


Ripping the Rifts

by nugget4ever7



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: F/M, Family, Fluff and Humor, Inquisitor has a kid, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-18
Updated: 2016-09-14
Packaged: 2018-03-31 04:57:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 27,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3965236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nugget4ever7/pseuds/nugget4ever7
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone knew messing with the Inquisition was a mistake, but messing with the leader's daughter? Even worse. (Content added to ch 7 as of 5/23/16)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The Qunari was unconscious, lying in a massive heap on the cell floor. He was laid on his stomach, curling around the green mark on his hand. As the Seeker looked at this strange mark, a pulse from the Breach was felt through Haven and the mark reacted in sync. It glowed brighter, and appeared to disturb the Qunari, when a low grunt of pain was heard. Cassandra clenched her fist, resisting the urge to draw her blade and end him now. 

He needed to pay for this.

Gritting her teeth, she turned to the elven apostate that entered with her and set him with a glare. “Do your work apostate,” She ordered him, hand on the sword tied to her hip, the unsaid threat clear. The bald elf studied her for a moment, most likely calculating his chances of winning in a fight with the Seeker, and nodded an affirmative. He turned and walked towards the prisoner to begin work on the pulsing mark. Cassandra turned on her heel and left the chamber.

As she ascended the stairs to the main hall of the chantry, and through her haze of fury, she could hear muffled sniffling echoing off the walls of the empty hall. The shedding of tears was not such an uncommon thing these days, but it was out of place. The building was after all, mostly empty do to the fear of the prisoner below. Anyone remaining on this level likely didn't know, or didn't care.

On a whim the Seeker went to investigate. Halting her brisk march to the exit, she slowly followed the noise until she was led behind the shadow of one of the hall's stone pillars, and was surprised to see a small girl of no more than eight or nine years of age. The surprising sight of the girl helped to rid Cassandra of some of her anger as it was replaced with confusion. There wasn't supposed to be any children in Haven.

The child was crying, but was attempting to stem the tide, clutching something to her chest, and covering her eyes with her other hand. A wooden sword and shield were laid out beside her. Cassandra began to slowly approach the girl.

“What are you doing here?” Cassandra's voice seemed to bring the girl out of her stupor as her head snapped in Cassandra's direction, obviously startled. The girl quickly scrambled to her feet, wooden sword quickly in hand, and into the torch light, allowing Cassandra to get a good look at the child. She was dirty and looked to be exhausted, either from crying or maybe running, judging from her very disheveled state of dress. Her red hair was pulled into a braid, but it was coming undone. She was scared, eyes red and mouth pulled in a fearful frown, the shaking from her hand holding the wooden sword accentuating the fact.

Cassandra put a hand up, “I'm not going to hurt you, I only want to know why you're here,” The words came out a little bit harsher then she intended, but the girl seemed relieved despite that, and let the sword drop the ground.

“I'm sorry! I'm not...” The girl's voice was hoarse, and it cracked as she spoke. With the back of her hand, she began to rub around her eyes, in an attempt to present herself, but it did little as she began hiccuping. Cassandra shifted her weight as awkwardness settled in her stomach. What does one do when a random child is reduced to in front of you? 

Feeling strange and not at all sure of her self, she knelt, and hesitantly reached a hand towards the girl's shoulder, “It's alright. You're alright. Take a deep breath.” She said, in a meager effort to calm the girl, supposing that inaction might be cruel.

It took quite a bit, but the girl's breathing evened, and her tears stopped. A good sign, Cassandra let out a tiny breath of relief. “Now... Can you tell me whats wrong?” The girl wiped her face with the sleeve of her jacket, and looked at the Seeker with grey eyes.

“I was looking for my father, but...” Then the Breach happened, Cassandra realized, feeling pity for the girl's situation, which she was sure would not be uncommon. Her anger flared, this was another thing the Qunari needed to pay for. The girl continued, voice rising in volume, “But... But I know he's alive! He has to be. He said he would be here!” Cassandra feared the girl would began to cry again.

There was little she could do for the girl at the moment, the Breach was too pressing of a matter to be put aside for a single missing person, but that did not mean nothing could be done. “What is your name girl?” 

“Asha... I'm Asha,” The girl managed through her returning sniffles.

“Alright. Asha. I can't help you right now, I have to fix the hole in the sky. I'm sorry,” Asha looked away, apparently expecting such an answer, “But one of the Chanty sisters out might be able to help your search or at least find you a meal to eat, okay? You should find one of them, alright?” Some direction was better then none, right?

Cassandra went to stand, but the girl promptly leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the Seeker's neck in a hug, surprising the woman. Asha let go quickly.

“Thanks Lady.” Asha said earnestly, then backed up to pick up her things and walked towards the Main doors of the chantry.

The Seeker rose to her feet, she hoped the girl's father was alive, and that Thedas survived long enough for her to find out. Cassandra then started toward the exit herself, having to return to her duties.

“Lady if you see him, could you tell him I'll be around here?” She asked, looking up to the woman.

“I will. What does he look like?” 

She thought for a moment, but settled on a single word, “Tall,”

\---------

Two days had past since Cassandra had spoken to the little girl, Asha, and the Breach was no closer to being fixed. The stress of the situation was beginning to wear on everyone, few people slept and those that did were only doing so because their body shut down out of exhaustion. The number of demons in the area has only increased, no matter how many were killed, since nothing could be done about the rifts in which they were appearing, their numbers could never truly be cut down. They needed a way to deal with the rifts, fast.

Solas should have had something by now. 

The Seeker fumed, as she tore though another shade demon. The action simultaneously eased her anger, and increased her frustration at the bleak state of affairs. She quickly scanned the area near the rift, checking for more demons, when she found none she relaxed a little to inspect the rift and see how soon the next wave of demons would arrive. This rift was quiet and still for the moment, meaning it would be an hour or so until the next wave.

Hearing others approach from behind, she turned to find the soldiers meant to secure the rift. Cassandra and the squad commander shared a nod as she sheathed her sword and shield, and allowed the squad to do their job. Cassandra then began to head back to Haven, where it was hopefully warmer than this place. 

On the journey back she contemplated on what to do if Solas found nothing. These were... very troubling thoughts, if Solas failed it would mean many more people would die. The Breach needed to be closed.

She found a seat in front of one of the many campfires, with a bowl of some kind of mystery stew, probably Fereldan judging by the grey color. The sight of the 'food' brought a small disgusted noise from the Seeker. While disappointed in the food, she refused to actually complain about it. However a voice next to her did not have such reservations.

“This sucks, Pa cooks better than this.” Cassandra looked over to see the source of the mumbled voice and found Asha seated closely to the Seeker, in a much more presentable state than two days ago. The girl's face was wrinkled up intensely at the grey concoction, but she was still eating it none the less, apparently out of the childish phase of refusing to eat unwanted food. This amused the Seeker, not at all blaming the girl for that reaction. She decided that maybe speaking with the girl might help the food go down easier.

“Hello, Asha” The Seeker spoke, turning her eyes back to the girl. Asha turned her head to smile a little at the scared woman, but lost it when she took another bite of the Fereldan stew. The absolutely disgusted expression on Asha's face brought a huff of laughter out of the Seeker.

“Hello Lady... maker this is terrible,” The girl fought through the taste to greet the older woman, while continuing to mumble complaints. 

Glancing around the girl Cassandra noticed that there still wasn't an adult with her, she still hadn't found her father it seemed. “I take it your father isn't much of a cook?” Cassandra asked with mild curiosity.

“Yeah, he's awful, and I every time I tell him so he says, 'At least it isn't Ferelden.' I never really got what he meant until now,” Asha's expression changing as she tired to mimic her father's face and voice, eyebrows and tone at the lowest the girl could manage, but she lost the lightness of the moment quickly. He was still missing.

Maybe talking about him would make her feel better. The Seeker decided to prod further, “It sounds like you get along well.” The stew's taste, was losing its edge.

“He's my Pa.” The girl answered, “A lot of people are afraid of him, but he's a really nice person. If someone is sad he always does everything he can to make them feel better, even if that means making horrible jokes.” The girl's face grew somber as she ate the stew and spoke between mouthfuls, “Actually the only time I've seen Pa ever be mean to anyone was when some bandits attacked our camp one night. He... killed them. It was... the only time I thought he was scary. The next day Pa brought me these,” Asha gestured towards the wooden weaponry on her back, “And started to show me how to use them, just in case something like that happened again. 'For my protection' he said,” Her mouth drew into a frown, the last of her stew finally finished, “That was some time ago, but since he doesn't use a sword and shield he can't really teach me very much.” Asha sounded very disappointed at that, but she was distracted from finding her father and the terrible stew.

Cassandra watched the girl begin to rant about how she had to teach herself what she knew, which wasn't much. The girl seemed adept at distracting herself, seeing as the girl wildly described the way her father tried to teach her and did a terrible job of it, with little to no prompting from the Seeker. The girl brought a real smile to the woman's face, something not often seen.

Asha, seeing the smile on Cassandra's face, immediately stopped what she was saying, and smile at the Seeker. Cassandra's expression fell away as she began to realize that maybe she was the one being distracted.

Asha, began to explain, “Whenever I'm too lost,” She made a circle motion around her head, “Pa would talk to me until I forgot what had me lost. I'd remember what it was afterward, but I could always think about it more clearly when I did. You were miles away Lady,” She bumped her shoulder into to the Seekers arm lightly, “I know you're trying to help with the green hole in the sky, but it's harder to solve a problem when you're lost in it for too long, Pa said that,” The girl's face fell.

“Your father sounds like... a very wise man,” Cassandra felt extremely surprised at Asha's words. What must her father be like?

The girl grinned, “Don't let him hear you say that, he'll get full of himself.” They shared a smile, but a voice sounded from behind them.

“Cassandra.” It was Leliana.

At once the Seeker had her full attention on the Spymaster. If Leliana was approaching directly that could only mean that something was happening with the prisoner. She gave a nod. Setting what little there was of her stew aside, Cassandra stood and turned to the young girl beside her. 

“I have to go, stay safe Asha,” The seriousness in her voice and face was a jarring change of tone from their conversation, but it did not seem to bother the girl.

“Maker keep you Lady,” She replied matching the woman's tone.

Leaving the girl behind Cassandra, along with Leliana, headed towards the chantry, where hopefully the prisoner would provide some answers.


	2. Chapter 2

The walk to the chantry was a tense one to be sure. Each step Cassandra took was slowly bringing back the storm of anger that had quieted over the conversation with the girl, Asha.

“The prisoner is awake?” The seeker asked Leliana, who was walking quietly beside her.

“Yes” The reply was calm, but Cassandra knew how close the Divine and Leliana were. The spymaster was bottling her pain for the moment. She hoped that Leliana would be able to move on in time, to have that time however, the Breach needed to be closed, today.

“And Solas?”

“He said to bring the prisoner and meet him at the nearest rift”

The pair reached the door to the small dungeon, and hopefully answers were just beyond it. Cassandra, with a powerful shove, opened the heavy door, letting it smack against the wall. The resulting bang reverberated though the chamber, bringing the prisoner's attention from the mark, to the two newcomers.

Leliana stayed back, while Cassandra stepped toward and around the kneeling qunari.

Looking him over quickly, the seeker could see that the man was dangerous, even without the glowing green mark. He was definitely a warrior of some sort, he didn't have the build of someone who used daggers or a bow, nor was he a mage, she didn't feel the familiar thrum of magic from his person. That was a small comfort, in these dark days. Seeing the deep scars crossing his head, she knew that he had experience from many battles. He was in all honesty, a fearsome sight. The horns on his head did not help his visage, long and plated as they were. 

If Cassandra were someone else she might have been intimidated by the large qunari. However, she was not someone else.

“Tell me why we shouldn't kill you now,” She spoke icily, finally beginning the interrogation, trying to carefully hold back her anger until answers were at hand, but it was not easily held. “Divine Justinia is dead. Everyone at the Conclave is dead. Except for you.” Accusation clear as she pointed a finger at the qunari's face, in front of him now, finishing her short inspection.

When the words came out of her mouth, the man's face drained of color so rapidly, that the seeker had to actually look at him for the first time. His face was... not what she had expected. In her imaginings over the last few days, he was a faceless and emotionless monster, not this. She found that he... did not have the face of monster intent on destruction, but monsters can shift their shape. Living as a Seeker of Truth for most of her life had instilled that lesson.

His face was set in panic as he began to speak, “What do you mean everyone is dead?!” His blue eyes wildly darting between the two women. The man's arms were tensing, evidently feeling the need to move, but the urge was being forcibly repressed it seemed, judging by the twitches they were giving off.

This was not the response she was hoping for. Ignoring his question she grabbed his marked arm forcefully and brought it up, “Explain. This.” The seeker's anger seeping though, as she threw the arm back down. In the back of her mind she noticed that his claws were filed down.

“I can't! I don't know what's going on!” He all but shouted back, pleading desperately with the woman.

Her control slipped.

“You're lying!!” her voice little more than a growl, as she grabbed at his collar. The action instinctual, its purpose was unclear, even to Cassandra. Perhaps to strangle the truth out of him?

Leliana finally stepped in, pulling the seeker back and away from the qunari. “We need him Cassandra.” Looking into the scarred woman's eyes, making sure the message was received. Understanding that her outburst was out of line, Cassandra conceded, and looked at the qunari with a scowl, at a larger distance this time. The man was staring into the floor now, appearing to be thinking about what he was told, still extremely pale.

Leliana took her turn to question him, “Do you remember anything about what happened? How this began?” Leliana was much calmer than Cassandra, but the ice in her tone left no doubt that she was definitely not happy.

The qunari closed his eyes for a bit, eyebrows furrowed, “I was in a... dark place, I was running... things were chasing me.” His shoulders shuddered a bit. He opened his eyes to make eye contact with the two women looking down at him, to convince them or maybe himself of his story. “Then... a woman...” He looked at the floor again.

“A woman?” Leliana called out in mild surprise, probably thinking back to the reports of the qunari's appearance.

“She... reached out to me, but then...” He trailed off, letting out a frustrated noise, his memory appearing to fail him, but Cassandra did have to begrudgingly admit that he did indeed seem sincere. It quelled some of her anger.

Deciding that they would get no more answers from him, Cassandra turned to address Leliana, “Get to the forward camp Leliana,” She looked over at the horned man, “I will take him to the rift.” Leliana, accepting the order, gave a small nod and motioned for the guards in the room to follow her exit.

Cassandra went to kneel in front of the qunari, and unlocked the irons on his wrists, only to wrap them with rope. The man was staring at her now, it was a little unnerving, even for the lady warrior, but he gave no protest to the new bindings. While tying the rope, she wondered idly if he could break out of it. If that was the case, however, she trusted her skills to deal with it.

He began to speak, his voice much lower and quieter than it was before, “What did happen?” His face had returned to a normal color.

Helping the qunari to his feet, he had after all been kneeling in the floor for some time, she answered, calmly this time, “It will be easier to show you.” A bit of the stress of the last few days showing though. Once he was completely on his feet, she motioned for him to follow her out of the chamber.

 

Cassandra did not expect the qunari to immediately agree to help, she had assumed it would have taken at least some convincing. However the only convincing he seemed to need was to be told that the Breach was a threat to everyone and the mark may be able to help deal with it. Oddly enough, he seemed to care little about the threat to his own life, he didn't even blink when she told him the mark was killing him. It seemed like dying was the least of his problems actually.

Seeing the absolute steel in his face, Cassandra was surprised, he appeared to be honest in his willingness to help. Though she still didn't see an alternative explanation, she felt a bit of doubt take root. Could he be innocent? 

That couldn't be debated now of course, the Breach was a threat to all Thedas, questions about the qunari's guilt or innocence could be answered after the green hole in the sky was dealt with. 

Shaking past her surprise, Cassandra began to lead the man out of Haven, this time with him in front, and hand on his back to keep him moving. The walk through Haven was a bit of trouble, but this was to be expected, the entire world blamed the qunari for the current situation, and that included the people in Haven. As they headed to the front gates, they passed several refugees, a few of which looked like they wanted to attack, that is until they met the seeker's glare and then quickly backed down, not willing to assault the qunari while he was under Cassandra's protection.

At that moment however, something passed over the qunari's face when he spotted something up ahead, but when the seeker turned her focus back to the front she only saw him finish a shake of the head, and the blank expression he had adopted once they had started moving from the chantry. 

Once they were outside the gates, the large man let out a sigh of relief. Cassandra could not blame him for that, feeling a bit relieved herself. They both relaxed a bit,as they continued in silence through the light snowfall and up the mountain path.

As they were nearing the first bridge on the road, the qunari asked, “The other woman, I think she called you Cassandra?” He turned his head to look at her for confirmation, she nodded keeping her face neutral, he continued, “I am Kaaras Adaar, if these were normal circumstances I would say it's a pleasure to meet you.” He gave her an ironic half smile, but his eyes were serious even as he tried to lighten the mood a bit. Kaaras turned his eyes back to the path. She already knew his name of course, and some of his mercenary background, but she didn't mind his formal introduction.

“To you as well,” She responded, finding the man to be not unpleasant thus far, especially when she compared him to her last prisoner. The actual thought of the dwarf brought a scowl to her face. She thanked the Maker that Kaaras was not insufferable like Varric.

When they reached the bridge, the Seeker decided that the area up ahead was too dangerous for the qunari to be bound completely, so she put out a hand to stop him. He did so and stared at her in questioning silence, but tensed when she pulled a knife from the back of her armor. He made no movements, and instead watched her carefully. While going to stand in front of him, she began to speak, “There will be a trial. I can promise no more.” She cut his binds and put the knife away, allowing him to relax.

“That's more than what I expected.” His voice very matter of fact, as he rubbed his newly freed wrists 

She turned to lead him up the more dangerous path, the air becoming colder as they went. They were now close enough to be able to see streaks of light coming out of the Breach. It was always a disconcerting sight.

Realizing that Kaaras had no idea what it was they were doing out here, Cassandra turned her head to look at him, “Your mark must be tested on a rift smaller than the Breach. It isn't much further.” He gave a nod in acknowledgment, his expression becoming steely once again.

The pair had walked a few more feet when a particularly large pulse came from the Breach, reacting instantly with the mark on the qunari's hand. Immediately, Kaaras fell to his knees, a strangled sound escaping his throat. Quickly, he shoved the marked hand into the snow on the side of the path, in an ultimately futile attempt to ease the burning sensation. He stayed there for a bit, trying to regain his bearings, and only looked up when Cassandra came to stand in front of him.

Looking at the current expression on Kaaras' face, the seeker might have laughed if the situation wasn't so dire. He seemed to shake out of it though, when she went to help him up, this time actually using her strength to do so. As she was making sure that he was steady on his feet, she realized that that he was really quiet tall. Even though she had been walking with him for some time, she hadn't noticed it before. Giving him a pat on the arm once he was firmly on his feet, receiving a bow of his head and a small “Thank you,” in kind, she turned to continue on the path. As she turned she thought she saw a strange expression on his face, one that she was not unfamiliar with, but it disappeared too quickly for her to be sure.

They were entering the second bridge on the path when Kaaras asked about his survival, when she told him the details he became pensive. That quickly disappeared when she also told him the details of the explosion, and he rapidly became almost angry, glaring lightly at the ground. It was not long after Cassandra had finished her explanation that several streaks of light fell from the Breach, and struck the bridge, destroying it.

The pair completely unprepared for the shock, tumbled into the newly created ledge, landing with a thud. They were beginning to sit up when another streak fell and crashed in the area near the now destroyed bridge. This light however, didn't fade as it hit the ground, it actually stuck to the ground, making a small pool of green magic, before a lessor Shade demon emerged from the energy. As soon as it had sensed the two, it was heading their way.

They were both on their feet instantly. Cassandra drew her sword and shield, and began to charge at the demon with a loud call of, “Stay behind me!” Kaaras did as she said, but the crash landing of another demon demanded action to be taken. 

The seeker stabbed her blade into the shade,with a grunt, killing it as she ripped it out again. She turned to where she heard the second demon appear, but instead found Kaaras slowly approaching, great sword in hand. The sight was instantly seen as a threat, a prisoner with a weapon would almost always attack their captor, right?

Immediately her sword was pointed at the qunari, his free hand came up palm forward. “Drop your weapon! Now!” She shouted at him, before she had taken in his appearance. He was covered in blood, the demon's blood she realized, nor was he carrying his new weapon in a threatening manner, in fact it seemed he was attempting to carry it in the most non-usable way possible. With mild surprise, she realized he wasn't going to attack.

He blinked at her, as he frowned. He was moving to drop the sword when she realized her mistake, “Wait” she called at a much calmer volume. They both relaxed as she put her weapons away, “You should keep it, I cannot protect you.” Her voice tired. She noted her inability to deal with the demons and protect the qunari, she would have to train more it seemed. She paused as she turned away a little, “I should remember you agreed to come willingly.” She looked at him an apology written on her face. His face twitched in a short smile, apparently accepting her words. They made to continue up the mountain.

Since they couldn't reach the original path, they had to take a detour along the frozen river. The way was completely snow covered, which would usually be little problem for the two, except for the demons that also roamed along the river. Fortunately, the demons were weak and easily destroyed. Cassandra decided, after seeing Kaaras use his great sword in battle, that the qunari really might have been able to break his bindings.

When they reached the desired rift, they found several men, including the apostate, Solas, and the dwarf, Varric, fighting several demons by a rift, but by the time the pair reached them and entered the fray, all the humans had been slain, leaving only Solas and Varric left to fight. In the middle of the fighting, Cassandra could see that the freshly slain dead were having an affect on Kaaras, he was cleaving into demons with an unusual fervor that he didn't have before . Usually mercenaries were used to death, this was strange. Quickly glancing around while finishing off her opponent, Cassandra found Kaaras angrily destroying the last shade, from a few feet away. She wouldn't have given him much thought, until she saw steam rising from his exposed skin. What was that?

These thoughts would have to wait, when Solas grabbed the qunari's marked hand and shoved it towards the rift.

A stream of magic connected the mark and the rift, causing a buzz to sound. After a few moments Kaaras appeared to pull on the stream instinctively, ripping the rift closed. Intense relief visibly washed through everyone. The rifts could be dealt with.

Kaaras asked Solas about the mark since he seemed to know the most about it, Solas quickly answered. The elf explained that the mark was never before seen ancient magic and that it had a relation to the Breach, he also said closing the Breach might kill him. The qunari just let out an exasperated sigh, probably having the worst day of his life. Varric decided then to introduce himself to the qunari, while also weaseling his way into helping, it was infuriating, but Cassandra would tolerate his presence for the moment. The dwarf then explained to Kaaras that Solas was the one who was keeping the mark from killing him the last two days, of which the elf was then politely thanked. They needed to move on, however, the Breach was still a threat.

Doing what they could for the dead, the group of four set off for the forward camp, to hopefully meet with Leliana and decide an exact course of action.

The path to the camp was no less snow covered, nor was it deprived of demons, but with the addition of Solas' magic and Varric's crossbow, the journey was much easier then expected.

They were nearly upon the camp when Varric asked about the validity of Kaaras' innocence. Kaaras replied simply, “I don't remember” 

Varric smiled, “That will get you every time. You should of spun a story” This irritated Cassandra, remembering the dwarf's interrogation a few weeks before.

“That's what you would done.” She stated shortly, still thanking the Maker the qunari wasn't like Varric.

“It's more believable, and less prone to premature execution,” The dwarf said, turning his smile towards the seeker. The sight caused a scowl to cross her face, but the group's arrival at the forward camp stopped any reply Cassandra might of made.

As they entered, Leliana could be heard arguing loudly with someone. Cassandra quickly led the group in the spymaster's direction, and found her along with the source of the other voice, Chancellor Roderick, arguing around a map of the area. The sight of him did not help the seeker's irritation, well meaning as he was, he was extremely bothersome about it. When Leliana and the Chancellor caught the arrival of the group, they immediately stopped their argument.

Leliana was relieved to see the new arrivals, “You made it,” She turned to Roderick, “Chancellor this is-”

“I know who he is,” He interrupted, glaring up at the qunari, seemingly unafraid of Kaaras' blood covered form. The qunari stared back at him, blank faced. He turned his glare over to Cassandra, “As Grand Chancellor of the Chantry, I order you to take this qunari into custody, to face execution.” He gestured towards Kaaras flippantly. The qunari grit his teeth.

Immediately Cassandra had a glare set at Roderick, this messenger was attempting to have authority were he had none. “You order me? You're a glorified clerk, a bureaucrat,.” 

“And you're a thug, who supposedly serves the Chantry,” He spat back.

Leliana stepped in, who was also tired at his attempts at authority, “We serve the Most Holy, Chancellor. As you well know.” Her voice cold.

“Divine Justinia is dead!” He nearly shouted “We should elect a new Divine and obey her orders on the matter.” Cassandra was about to verbally bash the Chancellor, when Kaaras had enough.

“That takes time we don't have. The Breach needs to be dealt with. Now.” He was glaring at the a Chancellor, sick of the hold up the human was causing. Cassandra agreed wholeheartedly. 

The Chancellor didn't seem to be able to see past blame, however “You're the reason we're in this mess in the first place!” He yelled, he was about to continue, but realized it was getting him no where, so he took a breath to calm himself, and resorted to pleading instead. “Seeker listen to me, give up on this before it's too late.”

“No, I know we can do this,” Absolute determination colored her face and voice. They had to do this.

His doubt persisted, “How? Even with all your soldiers-”

“We need to get to the temple.” The seeker pointed along the map, ignoring Roderick's indignant huff. “This is the quickest route,”

Leliana, seeing the path Cassandra pointed out, countered, “But not the safest. This mountain path is safer,” The Spymaster pointed to her own route.

Cassandra might have agreed, but she knew they lost a patrol there. “No, we lost an entire squad on that path, there are too many unknowns,” They locked eyes, and Cassandra realized that it would take too much to long to decide.

A sudden pulse came from the Breach, bringing everyone's attention to the sparking mark on the qunari's hand. Making a snap decision, the seeker approached him, “How do you think we should proceed?” Immediately his eyebrows went up in surprise.

“You're... asking me?” Shock showing in his voice

“You have the mark, so you are the one we must keep alive. Since we cannot decide on our own...” Her voice frustrated at their inability to make a decision without a third party. 

Kaaras met her gaze and stared for a few moments, studying her, probably making sure she was serious. He seemed to come to a decision when he brought his marked hand up for her to see. The mark was much larger from last time she had seen it. “This is probably going to kill me soon, and I'd like to close the Breach before that happens. I say take the quickest route.” He really didn't seem to care that he was dying, he actually seemed to be thinking about something else entirely. She wondered in the back of her mind if something was wrong with him, but the decision was made, and she nodded in acceptance.

Cassandra turned to Leliana, “Gather the men, all of them,” The spymaster accepted the task and left to prepare.

Kaaras, Cassandra, Solas, and Varric began to leave the camp and make their way on the final stretch up the mountain, but before they got out of ear shot the Chancellor had one final stab at Cassandra, “On your head be the consequences, Seeker,” Spitting the last word like a curse.

Cassandra ground her teeth, very much aware of that fact. She prayed to the Maker that this plan worked.

 

When the group arrived at the foot of the temple, word had already spread to the soldiers. They were doing their best to clear a path, but they could do little about the rift dotting the path. Kaaras' arrival was extremely fortunate. The group of four quickly charged into the battle, to hopefully close the rifts before more people were slain, but even with the groups assistance several soldiers fell. The demons coming out of this rift were much stronger than the last, Terror demons it looked like. Cassandra watched one let out a blood curdling screech as it slashed open a soldier. The man's blood flew, some of it coming to land on nearby combatants, including Kaaras. In an instant, the qunari cut the demon down, and went to close the rift with a snarl, steam rising off his person.

With the rift closed all demons that appeared from it, seemed to choke and fall to the ground dead, then disappear as demons do. A cheer went up through the remaining men, happy to finally see something finally be done about the rifts, even if it was from the person that supposedly caused it. 

Everyone took this chance to breathe and gather their wits, but Kaaras' reaction was a curious one, so Cassandra watched him she took a few moments herself. It was a few moments before the qunari could be seen taking deep breaths as he wiped the blood from his face, and soon after steam stopped coming off of his skin. He relaxed and went to face the group, finally calm again, catching her stare in the process. She was about to ask what was going on with him, when a set of foot steps was heard approaching, she turned and found Commander Cullen making his way towards her.

“Lady Cassandra, good job taking care of that rift,” He complemented, but she knew that it was not her credit to take.

“I did little Commander. This was the prisoner's doing,” She stated, gesturing to Kaaras, bringing Cullen's attention to the qunari. Cullen stepped up to address the taller man.

“I hope they're right about you. A lot of men died getting you here.” His tone accusing, eyebrows drawn in a slight glare.

“I'll do my best.” Kaaras met the mans glare with a seriousness, that surprised the Commander. He dropped his glare and sighed.

“That's all we can ask.” Cullen turned to the seeker, “I'm heading back, Maker be with you Cassandra” The Commander then left, leaving the group to the temple, and the Breach.

Cassandra led everyone, including some of the remaining soldiers, to the crater's entrance that was once the Temple of Sacred Ashes. When they entered, they caught sight of the largest rift they had ever come across, glowing brightly in the middle of the crater. Large tendrils of magic connected it to the hole in the sky. Despite its proximity to the Breach, this rift had no demons roaming near it.

Cassandra addressed Kaaras, “That, is were we found you. Are you ready?”

He looked at her and then the rift, “I'll try.” The steel was back in his face.

Solas chimed in, feeling that information would be helpful, “This rift was the first, it is key in sealing the Breach.”

A voice called out, “You made it, Thank the Maker,” Cassandra turned and found Leliana with several archers, heading their way.

The seeker nodded in greeting, but went directly to business, “Leliana, have your men surround the rift,” She turned to the rest of the group, “Everyone else, find your way down, quickly.” Her orders were speedily followed.

On the way down to the rift, a voice could be heard, but not from anyone direction, it seemed to radiate from everywhere, echoing off the walls of the crater. “The hour of our victory is at hand.”

It was unsettling, “What are we hearing?” The surprise showing in the seeker's voice.

“If had to hazard a guess, it's whoever caused the Breach” Solas answered, ever the adviser.

It was also the moment that she noticed the glowing red rocks along the walls, “You know that's red lyrium Seeker,” Varric piping up when he too noticed it.

“I see it Varric,”

“But what's it doing here?”

“Magic could of drawn on the lyrium below the temple, corrupted it” Solas offered his hypothesis.

Varric's face twisted in disgust, “It's evil,” He met Kaaras' eyes, “Whatever you do, don't touch it.” Kaaras nodded, accepting the advice.

The group reached the bottom, and began to cautiously approach the large rift. When they were close enough, magic sparked from Kaaras' mark as more voices began to reverberate through the space, “Keep the sacrifice still” It was the same voice from before. Sacrifice? 

“Someone! Help me!” That was the Divine's voice. What was going on?

“Memories from the Fade linger here,” Solas commented, answering the Seeker's thoughts.

Then a third voice sounded, one from the qunari standing a few feet away, looking confused at hearing his own voice, “What's going on here?!” 

Cassandra had to sound her confusion, “That was your voice, but Most Holy called out too you-” The energy around the rift suddenly shifted, forming shapes, one of which was definitely the Divine, and the other was too vague to recognize clearly. The voices began to repeat, but this time along with the forms over head.

“The hour of our victory is at hand. Keep the sacrifice still.” The shadowed form put out an arm toward the Divine.

“Someone! Help me!” At this a new form appeared, this one clearly seen. It was Kaaras.

“What's going on here?!”

The shadow spoke again, “Slay the qunari.” But the magic rapidly reverted back to the rift.

The scene brought back all the emotions Cassandra had been holding back since the day all this started, “You were there! Who attacked-? What are we seeing?!” She nearly yelled, now glaring up at Kaaras, anger and frustration coloring her face.

He met her glare with a slight glare himself, but his voice was calm and insistent, “I don't remember.” He held her gaze until she sighed and looked away, disappointed that more answers would not be found here. The image from the Fade raised many more questions, in fact the only answer that was gained was the truth of Kaaras' innocence. Solas approached quietly.

“The rift is closed, but not cleanly. It needs to be opened and then resealed, but that will likely attract attention from the other side.” The Elf informed her.

Back to business, she composed herself, “That means demons! Everyone stand ready!” She ordered loudly for everyone in the crater.

This needed to work. She sent a final prayer to the Maker.

When she received the signal that everyone was in position, she felt a little relieved to actually doing something about the problem. She turned and met Kaaras' eyes, and gave him the okay to began. He immediately stepped forward and put up the mark, allowing the magic to connect. It was a few moments before he pulled back ripping the rift back open, but almost immediately after, a Pride demon emerged, and landed with a crash.

Instantly everyone in the space made to attack the demon including Kaaras, but Cassandra grabbed his arm, stopping him, “No! Focus on the rift, We'll take the demon.” He looked like he wanted to argue, but accepted her words, and put his mark towards the rift again, leaving her to charge the large demon.

This rift was different than the last ones, each time Kaaras would use the mark the rift, it would send out a pulse of magic instead of closing. The pulses did injure the Pride demon however, making large openings to injure the demon further.

It was the fourth time Kaaras used the mark that something changed, the usual buzz from the mark grew unbearably loud, grating on everyone's ears. The Pride demon fell to one knee, as Kaaras made one final pull on the mark. 

The rift exploded, the shock wave it created knocked everyone in the crater off their feet. When Cassandra arose, she found the Pride had been destroyed, 'Good riddance' she thought feeling several new cuts and bruises from the fight. She quickly looked to check the rift, but found it closed and only the magic tendrils from the Breach in its place. Looking at the Breach, she was disappointed to see it, but she could see that was much calmer than it was, nor was it spitting out demons, that was a small comfort. 

Finally she looked for the qunari, but was surprised to find him face down on the ground. She rushed over immediately, and turned him on his side, she was relieved to find he still drew breath. Solas appeared beside her and went to check Kaaras' marked hand. 

He inspected it for a moment before speaking, “The mark, along with the Breach, seems to be stable. He is in no danger from the mark.”

Cassandra for the first time in long time, felt a little bit better about the state of the world. Now there was real hope that the world could be saved, and she was sure the qunari would be instrumental in saving it.


	3. Chapter 3

The people relaxed when word spread that the Breach was no longer spreading or spitting out demons, Many had a full nights rest in what must have felt like ages, a little restored hope easing minds a great deal. Reactions were mixed however, when it was also said that the qunari was the one responsible for stabilizing the Breach. Half of the people said he was divine sent, and claimed that the woman seen at his appearance was Andraste herself. Some even went so far as to call him the 'Herald of Andraste'. Those people were few in number, but the name was definitely gaining ground, it wouldn't be long until whats left of the Chantry caught wind of it. The other half however, was undecided, confused on where to lay the blame of the destruction of the Conclave, and unbelieving that an oxmen could be their savior. 

Cassandra could hear a few of the refugees talking about him, as she made her way to the chantry. They wondered when he'd wake up, and what he would say when he did, if he would talk about Andraste or the Maker. The Seeker thought it was extremely unlikely that he would say anything of the sort, thinking back to the qunari's near amnesia of the event. Even sent by Andraste, Kaaras probably wouldn't have divine words of wisdom.

Reaching the chantry's doors, Cassandra pushed them open and stepped inside. Immediately, she saw Chancellor Roderick waiting at the door of the make shift war room. The look on his face reminded her of a grouchy house cat. When the Chancellor saw that Cassandra had entered, he gave her a glare and entered the war room, to no doubt await her arrival. 

Since the stabilization of the Breach, Roderick had requested her presence several times, but fortunately, each time something more important would get in the way. However avoiding the Chancellor forever was impossible, and the seeker was sure the delay did nothing for his ire. Steeling herself for what was no doubt going to be a very long argument, Cassandra made her way to the war room.

Upon entering and shutting the door behind her, she was surprised to see Leliana in the room, and judging from her less than cool expression, the spymaster had been here for more than a little while, that didn't bode well. She also noticed two guards in the room, likely at the Chancellor's request, however fearlessly he acted, he knew he was unwanted, and could be removed quite easily. Cassandra turned her eyes to Roderick, and was of course met with a scowl.

“How wonderful for you to join us Seeker.” Having to wait definitely hadn't done anything for him, Cassandra wanted to sigh, but settled on a frown instead.

“What is it Chancellor?” 

He puffed up, and began to use a tone of authority that he had no place in having, “The issue of the qunari needs to be dealt with.”

She crossed her arms, and stated firmly, “He does not need to be, dealt with.” She had known this was coming of course, but she knew that the qunari was not at fault, she had seen the echo from the Fade herself. Roderick however, did not believe any of the accounts of the vision, including her own, and continued to insist that Kaaras was to blame.

The Chancellor was about to respond when loud running could be heard nearing the war room. Automatically hands were gripped around weapons, but they relaxed when the door opened to reveal one of the elven laborers. A little out of breath the girl spoke rapidly, “Lady Cassandra! He's awake. I told him you wanted to speak with him. He'll be here soon.”

This was relieving news to the seeker, with the qunari awake they could get the ball rolling. Cassandra gave a nod to the girl, who quickly bowed and shut the door as she left.

As difficult as it seemed, the Chancellor's frown deepened. “The qunari failed, Seeker. For all we know he could have intended it that way.” He tried to reason, feebly.

“I do not believe he is guilty.” She went to stand beside Leliana, who remained silent, already having her turn at the old man.

“Why do you refuse to listen seeker? Your duty is to serve the Chantry.”

That made her jaw clench, “My duty, is to serve the principles on which the Chantry was founded. As is yours.” She nearly spat.

They locked glares for a few moments, when the door opened once more, the accused qunari stepping through the doorway. Roderick reacted first.

“Guards, chain him, I want him prepared to be shipped to the capitol for trial,” Kaaras glared at the Chancellor in silence. The guards made no moves to follow the order.

“Disregard that, and leave us.” Cassandra over turned the Chancellor's attempt at control. The guards filed out quickly, thankful to finally be away from the constant arguing. Roderick turned to sneer at the seeker, and went to speak, but was interrupted. “The Breach is stable, but it is still a threat. I will not ignore it.” She pointed over at Kaaras' mark, “That mark is our only hope of closing it, I will not allow your blindness to destroy us all.” His absolute refusal that Kaaras could be anything but guilty was quickly becoming an issue. He would have to accept it or leave.

Kaaras decided to try, “Look, sir,” Roderick bristled at his tone, “I didn't cause the Breach, and I nearly died trying to fix it.” Kaaras was calm, if a bit frustrated at being held up once again.

The Chancellor glared up at the qunari, a sight that was almost comical with Kaaras being so much taller than the human. “A very convenient result.” Roderick retorted, causing Cassandra's temper to flare.

“Have a care Chancellor, the Breach is not the only threat we face,” Barely restraining herself from raising her voice, her hands we clenched, ready to punch the man in the face, but thankfully Leliana took her own turn at the stubborn Chancellor, allowing Cassandra to take a calming breath.

“There were others at the temple, perhaps they died at the temple or have allies that yet live. Someone most holy did not expect,” Her voice was cool, but the accusation was clear. Cassandra did not actually believe Roderick was responsible, but a great deal was unknown right now.

The Chancellor seemed utterly baffled by the accusal, “I am a suspect, but not the qunari.” He quickly regained his ire, and flippantly gestured towards Kaaras. The qunari crossed his arms, and a scowl formed on his face, but he stayed silent.

Cassandra reminded Roderick of the Fade echo, a last ditch effort to convince him, “I saw the vision at the temple, Chancellor. The Divine called out to him for help.”

“But that mark and the explosion. You're saying it was all a coincidence.” 

“Providence. The Maker sent him in our darkest hour.” She hoped that was the case. He was exactly what they needed, when they needed it. If he wasn't... she didn't want to think about that.

When she looked over at Kaaras, she found he was looking at her now, slacked jawed. “That is-... I-...” He went silent, having no idea what to say to that. She would have found the expression of surprise on his face amusing if she was not in such a bad mood. 

However, business had to be dealt with, the Chancellor absolutely refusal to budge has pushed the issue, and with Kaaras awake it could finally be done. It was time to officially declare the Inquisition, with out the support of the Chantry it seemed. A very troubling thought for her. Cassandra caught Leliana's eye, and received a small nod. She turned away to retrieve the heavy book from a table at the back of the room.

Leliana addressed Kaaras while Cassandra turned away,“Your mark really is our only hope of closing the Breach.” The spymaster's words brought him out of his shock and into a seriousness that was short lived, with the Chancellor piping up again.

“You do not have the authority to decided that.” He spat.

The Seeker had enough of Roderick's foolishness. She dropped the book on the war table, the resulting bang made Roderick jump, which caused a small amused smirk to cross Kaaras' face. “Do you know what this is Chancellor? At writ from the Divine granting us the authority to act.” Cassandra advanced towards Roderick now, causing him to back up and away from her, “At this moment I declare the Inquisition reborn. We will stop the breach and find those responsible, and restore order. with or with out your approval.” She finished her declaration with a forceful poke.

The speechless silence from the Chancellor was quite satisfying. He looked at everyone in the room and saw that he had made no allies in this place. He quickly turned, and walked out of the room, with out closing the door. Once the Chancellor had left most of Cassandra's anger drained away, but it left an acute tiredness in its wake, she let out a sigh and went to rub her forehead. She knew that the Chancellor was trying to do the right thing, but what he saw as right and wrong was clouded with fear.

A few moments of silence passed before Leliana spoke again, “This comes directly from the Divine, put the world in order and find allies against the chaos. We have no leader, no numbers, and now, no Chantry support.” She painted a dismal picture, even if all of it was true.

“And we have no choice. We must act, and we will need your help to do it.” Cassandra turned to look at Kaaras. He met her eyes, and went to answer her, but a voice from the open door way interrupted him.

“We'll do it.” Everyone quickly had their eyes turned to the intruder, but only found the little redheaded girl, Asha. She had both hands clamped over her mouth, like she hadn't mean to call out. Cassandra was surprised to see Asha here, she had only seen the girl from afar since the Breach was stabilized. In those times she hadn't spotted anyone with her, the Seeker wondered if the girl's father even lived, and if that necklace was just a lie. Now that the Inquisition was declared Cassandra might be able to assist the girl, but why was Asha here now? Cassandra went to ask, but surprisingly it was Kaaras who spoke first.

“Hey, I told you to wait outside.” He sounded exasperated, but not angry.

She lowered her hands and grinned sheepishly at the qunari, and stepped into the room, “Sorry, but think of it. We could be just like the knights in the tales. With sword fights and dragons!” She pretended to have a sword fight with a nonexistent opponent, before noticing everyone looking, her face immediately turned red, but she didn't runaway like other children would have, “Sorry...” She squeaked this time. Kaaras stood next to the girl and put a hand on her head, ruffling her hair.

“Its alright, I understand.” He faced Cassandra and Leliana with a full smile this time, “This, is my daughter. Say hello, Asha.”

“Hi.” Her face was still red, but she managed a small smile at the two women.

The statement caused the seeker's eyebrows to shoot up. She hadn't considered the fact that Asha's father could have been anything other than a human, seeing that the girl looked nothing like a qunari. When she remembered the girl's description of him however, she thought that maybe it should have been a bit obvious, Kaaras certainly looked like he could carry several men, but the girl really should have mentioned the horns. She also wondered if Asha had been taken in or if the girl was actually his daughter, Cassandra after all, hadn't seen any qunari children.

“Hello, Asha.” Cassandra answered in surprise, and glanced at Leliana, who had a tiny smile on her face, the spymaster probably knew something about this. “Did you know about this Leliana?”

“To an extent. I did not know that this was the girl, however.”

The seeker returned her eyes to the qunari, her expression back to normal, “I am surprised, but this does not change our position. Kaaras Adaar, please help us fix this.” She asked, the seriousness of the situation returning in force, “Your daughter can be protected here, or sent else where if you like...” She added glancing at the girl.

His eyes softened, “That won't be necessary, the Gremlin will stay with me.” He patted the girl's head, but he matched Cassandra's seriousness, “If you really are trying to restore order, I promise to do what I can to help.” Kaaras put his hand forward, which she immediately grasped in a handshake. The qunari grinned at the seeker, who gave a smile in return as they let go. She felt a small hum of a thought in the back of her mind, but she ignored it, it was not the time to think of such things. The Inquisition now took priority.

Leliana spoke now, “Now that you'll officially be staying, you may take up quarters in the cabin where you awoke.” 

Kaaras continued to grin, “Alright! An actual bed!” He turned his head to Asha, “Hear that? No bedrolls for awhile,” The girl grinned back at him, finally over her embarrassment. He faced Cassandra and Leliana, a more subdued smile on his face, “So... What's the first order of business?”

Cassandra answered this time, “There are a two rifts near here that need to be sealed, and... you will need to be better outfitted, I think,” She looked at light clothing he wore, it was ratty and would do little against major attacks, but it should get him through the few rifts near Haven.”I will accompany you,” She turned and nodded to Leliana, signaling their departure. Cassandra led the father-daughter duo out of the war room, and into the chantry, making sure to pick up her shield, before leaving the building entirely.

When the trio exited, they found many of the refugees and a few of the Chantry folk gathered in the area in front of the chantry, evidently to stare at Kaaras, judging from the silence that fell when he exited. How annoying, Cassandra stepped towards the main group, “Back to your business! Now!” She ordered loudly. The group immediately began to disperse, fearing the seeker's ire. Sighing, she turned to her companions, and found that Asha had climbed on her father's back for a piggyback, which was quite adorable she had to admit. She continued with business however, “I will gather the others, you can meet us at the gate.”

“Of course,” He gave a small bow, and began to jog towards the cabin he would reside.

“Bye bye!” The girl called back, already some distance away. The girl was silly, but Cassandra was glad that someone had found some peace in these trying time. Shaking her head, the seeker went to collect Solas, and perhaps Varric since he insisted on helping, he was useful no matter how irritating he was.

 

The group didn't have to wait long for Kaaras, who arrived a moment or two later, this time with a great sword instead of a child on his back. He greeted everyone with a smile before they set off, he was obviously feeling better now that his life wasn't under immediate threat. The qunari actually seemed to be a cheerful enough person out of combat, hearing him ask Varric about Bianca. However when they reached the first rift and began fighting the shades around it, the cheerfulness disappeared, and was replaced with the reckless whirlwind that Cassandra first saw on the mountain. 

Near the end of the battle, the seeker was suddenly reminded of his reaction when some of the human soldiers died in his presence. She had seen such things from warriors before, but only after long fought battles, and never in such an on and off fashion. The fighting ended quickly as Kaaras closed the rift. The demons here were easy to destroy, but it would allow some peace of mind for everyone. While making their way to the last rift, Varric had apparently noticed the qunari's peculiar reaction as well, “Hey Kaaras, how did you manage that little steam trick back on the mountain? It was quite the sight.” Solas seemed to wonder as well, his attention focusing on Kaaras.

The qunari glanced at the dwarf, “Ah... that. That comes from my abilities as a Reaver. The scent of blood throws my body into a rage, but the process makes me produce a lot more heat than normal. The steam part only happens when it's cold, like now.” He explained.

Reaver. Cassandra remembered hearing tales of Reavers in her family, that could explain some of his uncaring behavior from that day. “That requires you to drink dragon blood, yes?” She questioned, remembering that those warriors would fly into rages at the slightest provocation as they used more of the blood, before their recklessness got them killed. Kaaras didn't seem to be an angry person, in fact he seemed to be very in control of himself. Most people would have have probably flew into a fury at being locked up and accused of something that they had no knowledge of, it was a peculiar occurrence, especially if he was taking dragons blood.

He looked at her now, “It does indeed, but I haven't had any in some time. You know a bit about them I take it?”

“Yes, there are tales of Reavers in my family. They all apparently used too much dragons blood and were killed in their resulting frenzy.”

“That can happen, yes. I try not to take it too often, because of that” His face was solemn.

Varric spoke again, “Alright, but what about the blood thing, does it not work with demon blood? I mean, you're covered in it right now, but you're not...” He made a gesture with his hands.

“I've never fought demons before, the smell is... a lot different from dwarf, elf, or human blood, but if we fight enough of them, it'll be just like any other blood.” Kaaras gave a humorless smirk.

It was at this time that the second rift came into view, and forced conversation to a stand still. Terror demons roamed the space below the rift, this fight would be more difficult than the last. Steeling themselves, Kaaras and Cassandra charged towards the demons with a shout drawing the Fade creatures' attention. Solas and Varric began to shower the distracted demons in bolts and lightening, frying and injuring many.

The seeker found that she worked well with Kaaras, it was rough around the edges of course, but for now they were defeating the enemy with a very haphazard teamwork, that often had them missing the each other by a breathe. 

When the fight finished and the rift was sealed, a feeling of satisfaction settled on the group. The demons were defeated quickly, messy as it was, and only a few minor bruises were gained, a testament to their skill. It was actually an enjoyable fight, dangerous enough to send a rush through her veins, but without the real stress of a near death experience or the over bearing threat of the world coming apart. Kaaras apparently felt the same, a wild grin covered his face, and she could see small wisps of steam coming off his person, already being affected by the blood it seemed.

“That was great!” He really seemed giddy, “Reminds me of the Valo-Kas.” After putting his sword up, he punched the palm of his hand, “But they could never hit that hard.”

They all shared an amused smile at the qunari's antics, as they began to make their way back to Haven. Kaaras led this time, probably eager to spend time with his daughter, which brought a question to mind. Did the girl live among the mercenaries? She seemed to turn out well enough, but... how? 

Solas speaking up the for the first time, interrupted her thoughts, “The Valo-Kas? That is your mercenary group, yes?” Word traveled quickly it seemed.

“Yeah, but if this was the Valo-Kas you'd be unconscious, so all around this is better.”

The statement brought a small smile to Solas' and Cassandra's face, while Varric let out a laugh.

They were nearing the gate now, and Kaaras still needed new armor, “Kaaras,” Drawing his attention, “You should speak to the smith, before you turn in. His name is Harrit, he will outfit you.” She pointed to the forge near the entrance to Haven.

“Of course, Lady Cassandra.” The words seemed to surprise everyone, but the qunari left before anyone could question him about it. Which was probably best, as she could see the annoying smirk on Varric's face, but she refused give him a reason to say anything, and walked to the gates, ignoring the dwarf's existence entirely.

The rapid crunching of snow was brought to her attention. Speeding towards the now group of three was the girl, Asha. Barely stopping in time, the girl managed not to run into the Seeker. Asha certainly liked to run around.

The girl took a breath, “Hey Lady. Do you know where my Pa is? You went with him to kill demons right?” Cassandra could almost feel her companion's eyebrows rising.

Smiling a little the woman replied, “Yes, he just went to see the smith, outside the gates.”

“Good... Thank you for telling me,” The girl looked around and gave a small smile to Varric and Solas, but said nothing. When she glanced at the ground a thought seemed to cross her mind, she bent and scooped up some snow into her hands. She looked back up and grinned at the seeker, “Maker keep you.” And marched out the front gates, packing the snow tightly, ready to be thrown.

“Seeker... Was that...?” The dwarf spoke from behind.

“That... was Kaaras' daughter.” She stated simply.

“But she's human?”

“I am aware, I know as much about it as you do.”

“I'm sure we learn more over the coming days. We will be spending a lot of time together.” Solas reminded them, which was of course true. This Inquisition would require a great deal of time and effort from each of them. She prayed it didn't fall apart, everything was riding on this.

For now though they needed to know their place in the world, Leliana most likely already sent her birds to do just that. The Inquisition would likely face intense opposition, especially with the remnants of the Chantry being so against its formation. This would be a long road, that was certain.


	4. Chapter 4

When the next day arrived Leliana's birds had returned, and the news was just as was suspected, the Inquisition was seen as a bunch of rebel upstarts, using the unfortunate state of the world to grab power. That wasn't true of course, but it would take much to change that view. There was some good news however, even with the opposition, people were slowly arriving in Haven to join the Inquisition. People that were sick of nothing being done about the state of the world. The Inquisition's numbers were still small, but they would take what they could get.

Morale had also improved surprisingly, when word spread that Kaaras was awake and going to aid the Inquisition. It gave the faithful a bit of peace of mind to have the 'Herald of Andraste' lend a hand. Cassandra prayed no one would actually say that as she made her way to retrieve the said qunari for that morning's meeting. 

Kaaras' possession of the mark directly tied him to the Inquisition's choices for now, and that meant his presence at the meeting would be needed. He even might be able to smooth the process a bit. The leaders of the Inquisition had the unfortunate tendency to argue to a stand still when disagreements arose, and Kaaras could be the deciding factor that they surely needed. From what little she has seen of him, the qunari seemed to be a levelheaded enough person outside of combat, he would do well with the position.

Stepping down the hill from the chantry, Cassandra could see that Haven was already busy, with more than half of the people already up and about, while any others were either asleep or eating. Which is how she found the qunari already wearing his new armor, sitting on a crate outside his cabin along with his daughter, eating something out of a bowl, and judging from the duo's matching scowls, it was probably Ferelden stew again.

She walked towards them, catching their attention. Asha grinned and gave a little wave to the seeker as she approached. Near enough to speak now, Kaaras coughed once before speaking, “Lady Cassandra, come to enjoy the splendors of Ferelden cooking with the Gremlin and I?” He took another bite, and frowned.

Cassandra smiled at that, “No, fortunately I've already eaten.” 

“Aw too bad, cause this is just the best.” He made a face, but composed himself quickly, “But anyway... Was I needed for something?”

“Yes, we are having a meeting to decide our next course of action, and your presence will be needed. It will likely be so for quite awhile.” She told him honestly.

His eyebrows shot up, “Really? I mean... Yes, of course.” He quickly ate the last of his stew, put aside the bowl, and stood up. He turned to the girl, who was now standing atop the crate, “Alright kid, you need to go and practice, I know you haven't been and you have to get back to it.” She wrinkled her nose at that, obviously displeased, “Come on, if you want to see a dragon up close you need to practice. I'll be in the chantry if you need me, alright?” A dragon?

Asha hopped off the crate with a frown, “Fine, okay.” She turned and walked into the cabin, only to emerge a moment later with her wooden weapons. She was still frowning, but she didn't resist the hug Kaaras picked her up in.

He put her down quickly, and set the girl on the path, “Alright, get going.” He told her, as she walked off to likely find a place to practice. Kaaras looked at the seeker apologetically, “Sorry, I'm ready to go now.” Cassandra gave a nod as they went to leave.

They were half way to the chantry when the qunari spoke again, very tentative in his tone, “Asha told me that you spoke to her while I was... out.”

She glanced back at him, “Yes, briefly. She was very upset.” His face saddened at that.

“Ah, of course,” He shook his head, and continued, “But I appreciate you speaking to her. She's tough, but she can forget herself.” He seemed completely heartfelt, and it caught her off guard.

“I... did very little, but you are welcome, I suppose.” She felt a little awkward at his thanks, the seeker really had only said a few words to the girl, and she certainly hadn't said anything truly praise worthy. Cassandra would reluctantly accept the thanks, even if she thought it was undeserved. It was also strange to receive gratitude from a man that was just previously her prisoner. She was amazed that he as so amicable actually, and not a spiteful mess that most would become. She wondered how he could be like this, especially if he was taking dragons blood.

The rest of the walk to the chantry was spent in silence.

It was when they had entered when Cassandra decided it was time to brief Kaaras, but when she looked at him, he was rubbing his left hand where the mark was located.

“Does it trouble you?” She took a few more steps and stopped to look at him fully.

He stopped rubbing the mark, answered, “Ah, No, it's fine. It just tingles a bit. Nothing serious.”

“We take our victories where we can.” She smiled a little but, was quickly back on task, “Your mark was not strong enough to close the Breach, we will need to find some way of powering it.” She explained to him.

“If that's what it takes,” He looked at the glowing green mark for a moment, and then back at her face with a smirk, “I'm always ready to lend a hand.”

Maker preserve her, this is probably what Asha must have meant about bad jokes. Her utterly unamused expression must have been funny, because Kaaras began to laugh, “I'm sorry Lady Cassandra. I had to take the opportunity.” When her expression still didn't change, he continued, a grin on his face, “I promise it'll be the only one for awhile, really.”

She said nothing, and only let out a sigh as she turned to enter the war room, with the chuckling qunari following behind.

 

It was decided that they needed to go to the Hinterlands and speak with a member of the Chantry, Mother Giselle. She would hopefully aid the situation with the Chantry, and allow the Inquisition the time to deal with the Breach, before they rallied the world in opposition.

The group set out promptly the next day, with a request from Kaaras for someone to check on his daughter every so often. They would be gone for a week, meaning that just after they were reunited, Kaaras and Asha would have to separate again. 

The girl was understandably upset, and Cassandra could see the effects as she waited by the gates. Asha had attached herself to the qunari's neck, and had a deep frown on her small face, as Kaaras attempted to pry her off. Seeing such a large a man struggle to remove such a small child brought a tiny smile to the seeker's face.

“Do you think she's really his daughter?” Varric asked Cassandra, as he approached, also looking at the struggling pair.

Her smile disappeared, as she glanced at the dwarf,, “I do not think it matters,” She answered, but she was curious that was for certain. However they had bigger things to worry about.

“True enough.” He didn't say anything more.

Solas arrived, and greeted them politely. 

Looking back at Kaaras, she found that he had finally dislodged the girl and was holding her away from himself to say something. Whatever he said caused surprise to cross Asha's face, and immediately looked over at Cassandra's group quickly. This surprised the seeker, Kaaras seemed to be speaking about them? Asha returned her eyes to her father, as he continued with his speech. This time the girl's face became serious, but it was a determined expression. The girl nodded once, and Kaaras brought her in for a hug, before setting her on the ground. Asha then turned and walked into the cabin that she shared with her father. Kaaras now made his way to the waiting group.

“Ready to go.” The qunari said as he came to stand in front of the group.

Cassandra nodded at him in understanding. 

With the last member finally present, the group set off to the Hinterlands.

 

The situation in the Hinterlands was bleak, to say the least. The mage rebellion, and it's effects were seen plainly. Rogue templars and mages roamed, and killed anyone in their path., including simple villagers that had little to do with the conflict. Many of the survivors of these attacks had fled to the Crossroads. The sight of the injured enraged Cassandra. This didn't have to happen. This could have been stopped. The seeker lost her self in these thoughts for a moment, as Kaaras finished speaking with Mother Giselle.

“Mother Giselle will give us the names of some of the grand clerics.” Kaaras said as he came to stand next to her, bringing her out of her rage tainted thoughts, “Hopefully it well help.”

She nodded, “Leliana will be able to use them.” They grew silent as they looked around at the shabby village. Solas was doing what he could for the wounded, and Varric was speaking with a worn down merchant. These people had lost all hope, and it showed, slumped shoulders and glassy eyes. It was upsetting to see in so many people at once.

“We need to help these people before we leave.” The qunari stated suddenly. Cassandra looked over at Kaaras, and found he had that steely look again, the one she had seen on the mountain. 

They locked gazes for a moment before, she answered, “Agreed. We will do what we can.”

Which was how they spent the an entire day and a half. From sealing rifts to finding blankets, if they could do it, it was done. They even went as far as to destroy the splinter groups of templars and mages in the area. Doing so much however, was taking it's toll on everyone, and Cassandra could feel a nasty bruise on her thigh that would certainly smart for sometime. She was certain that everyone had a similar situation.

Despite her injures, Cassandra felt better. Helping these people made her feel that the Inquisition was not a fruitless venture. Which was a relief, it was something she worried about constantly, and a respite was welcome.

Yet even as she felt better, the seeker knew that this was only one place in Thedas. Who knew how many villages just like this one were out there, and didn't have the Inquisition to help them?

 

The trip back to Haven was much easier than when they left. With a lessened sense of urgency, it was smoother, but newly acquired horses didn't hurt either. Cassandra had mixed feelings about the animals, but she could deal with them for now, and seeing Varric struggle with the beast was worth it in itself. 

They reached Haven quickly, and only had to stop to camp once on the way. Dismounting at the gate, the group was about to separate when rapid footfalls could be heard from behind. Turning quickly, Cassandra found the little girl, Asha, was running straight for Kaaras at full speed, but the qunari hadn't yet turned, like Solas, Varric, and herself. The girl was close now, and he still hadn't turned, but she could see a smile on his face?

Asha went to shoulder the back of Kaaras' knee, but the qunari sidestepped and picked the girl up as she passed. Asha squeaked in surprise. “Nice try Gremlin. Better luck next time.” With the girl under his arm, he began to rub her head until her hair was completely ruined, causing the girl to protest loudly. The man laughed and put the girl down, apologizing as he chuckled. Asha huffed and began to redo her braid, apparently such things were normal for them.

They all stood for a moment as Kaaras finished his fit, not wanting to interrupt. Kaaras turned to the others, “Solas, Varric, this is my daughter Asha,” He introduced.

“Hello,” She said, and finished tying her braid into place. Looking up now she settled her eyes on the dwarf, “Pa says you're a storyteller. Do you know any ones with dragons?” Getting right to the heart of it.

Varric smiled, “I do indeed, and a few with a couple of griffins too. I could tell you one if you like?” The statement instantly had the girl almost bouncing with excitement. It was incredibly adorable.

“Of course this will have to happen after practice tomorrow,” Kaaras said, causing the girl's smile to disappear, but he continued, “We're all very tired Gremlin, and Varric's story won't be as good if he's tired. You want the best story right?” Asha nodded, “Then tomorrow it is. Now... is there anything other than Ferelden cooking here?'

That brought a bit of the spark back, “Yes, I managed to find some! I put some in the cabin, for when you got back.”

“Aw thanks kid! Why don't you go the cabin now? I'll meet you there in a bit, I still have to report.”

“Right-o!” She began to march off towards the dwelling.

When she was far enough away the qunari spoke, “I'm sure you could handle a story now Varric, but she won't go to sleep if you tell her at this time.” It was then that the group realized how late in the day it was, likely just after dinner.

“Understandable, children are often so excitable.” Solas commented, amused at the display. The group started to move further into the camp.

Kaaras looked over at the elf, “Do you have any experience with children Solas?” He asked curiously.

“Only with those in the fade.” The elf replied honestly. Kaaras' eyebrows furrowed.

“Hmmm,” The qunari turned his eyes to Varric and Cassandra, “What about you guys? Maybe you babysat a cousin at least?”

“I was in Seeker training since I was very young. There was no time or need for such things.” Cassandra spoke, matter of fact.

“The one time I tried babysitting, the kids ended up trying to steal stuff out of my house.” The dwarf started to laugh, “They ended up getting stuck hanging out a window trying to escape.”

Kaaras laughed for a moment, but then gave small sigh, “That is surprising. I was expecting at least someone else with kids.” They reached the point in camp where the group would separate. Kaaras then smiled, “But that means you guys get learn somethings in our time together.” Varric and Solas chuckled as they went to their separate spots. Kaaras and Cassandra started toward the chantry now, the other advisers had most likely seen the group approaching Haven, and were waiting in the war room.

They walked a few steps when the seeker spoke, “Your daughter... she seems to be very interested in dragons.” Asha's apparent interest in the creatures reminded Cassandra of her brother, Anthony. A painful thought.

Kaaras glanced at her, “Yes, she dreams of one day fighting one of the winged beasts, like a knight in the tales.” His tone becoming somewhat theatrical, as he thought about the girl's dream.

“And... she is serious about that?”

He lost some of the humor in his face, “Oh very much so. I tried to talk her out of it once, but she just got this stubborn look in her face.” He began to rub his jaw. Their talk must have been long. “Right now she just tries to hear every story about them, even if they end horribly. She hasn't yet begged to fight one.”

The duo stepped though the chantry doors. “Has she had this dream for long?”

“Hmmm... I think it's been two years or so?” He scratched behind a horn, “She ended up coming with me on a job one time, and a High Dragon flew over our camp that evening, and now it's one of the only things she talks about. We were lucky we weren't near the nest.”

Despite the reminder of her brother, it was amusing to hear of a child be so interested in something, even if that something could swallow them whole. It made Cassandra smile a little, “Asha seems like a sweet girl.”

They reached the door to the war room. Kaaras grinned down at her, “You say that now, but just wait a little while.”

The seeker laughed once, ignoring the returning hum, and entered the war room.


	5. Chapter 5

Walking towards Haven's training grounds, seven days before they would leave for Val Royeaux, Cassandra could hear the sounds of practice. Normally that was quite common on the training grounds, but it was still quite early, most of the recruits had yet to wake for their morning routine. She was usually the first one to arrive.

Stepping outside the gate, she could actually see the grounds, and that Kaaras, along with his daughter, had commandeered a few of the training dummies to practice with. They both slashed at the dummies, but it was obvious Asha had little instruction. Her balance was off, and each strike the girl made didn't have nearly enough power it should have. The sight made the Seeker cringe a little. Did he even try to teach her anything? Cassandra approached the duo to take up her usual place.

“Morning Lady Cassandra.” Kaaras greeted lightly, Asha smiled at the women, but she quickly returned her focus to the dummy. 

“Good morning.” Cassandra took her place, and began her own sword practice. They trained for sometime, and it seemed that Kaaras did try to teach the girl, his instruction was just terrible. The Seeker wanted to fix it. However it was obvious Asha was exhausted, her breathing could be heard, and she was beginning to have trouble lifting her weapon.

Kaaras stopped her, halting his own activity for a moment, “Okay, that's enough. Go get some water, okay?”

Asha immediately dropped her sword, a sigh of relief escaped her, as she leaned over onto her knees. She breathed deeply for a moment before trudging off.

The Qunari sighed and rubbed his face. “You can probably tell, I am not the greatest of teachers.”

Cassandra finished a set of strikes, and looked at him from out of the corner of her eye, “It is some what obvious.” She teased him lightly. He frowned at her, a little insulted, “But you're trying. Many others cannot say the same.” She amended truthfully. The furrow of his eyebrows relaxed, but his frown remained.

“I might have been able to teach her two handed, but she insisted on this.” He leaned his practice weapon on the dummy.

By this time the day had finally began, and many of the recruits had arrived at the grounds. The sounds of weapons and shields clashing filled the air, and the Seeker could hear the commander berating at a recruit from some distance away. It was familiar, and oddly calming. Stopping her own training, Cassandra turned towards the Qunari as he continued, “I would have had one of the other mercenaries help me, but our last shield user died clearing out some raiders, nor have I fought enough skilled ones like your self, to teach her myself.” He looked at her from the corner of his eye, and shot her a smile, one that was meant to be quite charming, but she resistant to such things. “Which is why I wanted to ask-” The return of his daughter stopped him. 

“Pa,” The girl called. Turning their attention towards the voice, they found the girl standing quietly, clutching a water skin.

“There she is,” Kaaras said as Asha came to stand in front of him, “Ready for the next part?” He reached a hand out towards her.

Asha was still quite tired, but she smiled and slapped the extended hand.

“Alright!” The Qunari grinned, and turned to the Seeker, “What I wanted to ask you.” He paused, and added formally, “Lady Cassandra. Would you please do me the honor of a spar? It will help me with her training, and mine too.”

Cassandra glanced at the girl before she answered, and found Asha silently pleading with her eyes, and the Seeker thought the action was extremely effective, even though it was unnecessary. A spar would be welcome, it had been sometime since she had an opponent to test her skills, and not simply somebody to crush. She had considered asking Cullen, but coordinating and training the recruits would likely consume his time utterly. Nor were those recruits viable candidates, they would be smashed easily under her boot, and neither side would gain much from the experience. Kaaras was not a green recruit.

“Very well, I'll spar with you,” She met his eyes, “But I will not be holding back.”

The Qunari, with a more subdued smile, bowed his head a bit, “Of course.” He grabbed his sword and stepped outside the dummies, away from the tents and recruits. He stopped and rolled his shoulders, as the Seeker retrieved her shield from its location a few feet back. When she was in front of him his expression was a great deal more serious, and he eyed her as he readied his weapon, “Just... try not to draw blood.”

He was a Reaver, a warrior fueled by blood and pain. It wouldn't be wise strike him more than a few times. She nodded, and readied herself, but he turned his head to speak to his daughter, who sat attentively on the sideline, “Okay Gremlin, watch her carefully now. Her foot work especially, she knows how stay on her feet.” The girl's balance issues were indeed a big problem. 

“I'm on it!” The girl gave a funny salute, making the corner of the Qunari's mouth turn up. Kaaras turned his head back to Cassandra, and nodded to her, ready to began.

The Seeker took a breath, and nodded back. The Qunari charged then, eager for the first strike. He rushed forward, and brought his sword down in a heavy attack. She deflected it with her shield, and went in for her own, but he stepped out of range and blocked her following strike. Their weapons scraped for a moment, before he shoved her back and readied a horizontal slash. Seeing the attack coming, the Seeker braced herself behind her shield.

The swing had been powerful, and when it struck her shield an uncomfortable vibration was sent up her arm. This was nothing she hadn't experienced however, and recovered quickly to deal out her own retaliation, which had Kaaras backing up and away. She managed a hard strike on his upper arm, but was rebuffed when the Qunari regained his posture and shoved her back again. This time when he attacked he tried to catch her off guard, as he brought the great sword on the side of her sword arm. The block with her sword arm was not ideal, and wouldn't last long, but she still had her shield. Quickly she extended her arm and shoved her shield into his stomach, in an cheap, but effective bash.

The effect was immediate, she could hear the air come rushing from his lungs, and the force behind his weapon abated, allowing her to push the sword away. Taking the opportunity while he was dazed, she put foot behind his own and shoved him with her shield, causing him to fall to the ground. This match was hers.

Sheathing her sword, Cassandra looked over at Asha to gauge her reaction. The girl now stood wide eyed, with her mouth agape, a sight that gave Cassandra the urge to smirk, which she ignored, but leaving someone in awe was satisfying. Returning her attention to the Qunari, who had sat up now, she found his expression to be somewhat lost in thought. Had she wounded his pride?

The Seeker approached, and offered him a hand, a test of sportsmanship she supposed. He looked at it for a moment, before taking it and standing up. When he was on his feet again, the Qunari looked into her eyes with seriousness, still holding her hand, “You are a force of nature,” He let go, picked up his sword, and grinned at her, “Please allow me a rematch,”

That was... not what she was expecting, her face warmed slightly. She expected wounded pride, not... that. It was an usual thing to say to your opponent after getting knocked on your ass, but she would accept it for now. Having your skills praised almost always left a pleasant feeling, and his current smile was very nice, she had to admit, which helped very little with her embarrassment. However she would absolutely ignore that part, it would not do well to think on it, that humming thought needed to stop, but he was polite, she would allow him a rematch.

“Very well, you may have your rematch. Please try to put up more of a fight.” She teased him automatically, and almost immediately regretted it. Such a thing would likely encourage his flattering behavior, even if she enjoyed the attention.

Before he could answer a voice called from the side, “Yeah Pa. That was terrible,” Looking over at the girl, Cassandra found the girl smiling mischievously at her father.

Kaaras put his free hand on his heart and acted aghast, “My own daughter thinks me a failure. What has the world come too?” He threw his arm over his eyes, a silly and overly dramatic action, but it had the desired effect, Asha laughed at the display. Hearing the small noise Kaaras relaxed his posture with a smile.

Cassandra could feel a warmth spread in her chest from the sight, and along with a twinge of pain. In her life, she had rarely been apart of a close family, with her parents dieing as they did, and her time spent with her uncle and his corpses was not what she would call ideal. Her time with her brother had been the closest thing to this. The pair reminded her of better times.

Finished with his silliness the Qunari looked back at the Seeker and readied his sword. “I promise to put up a much better fight this time.” He told her, still amused at his own joke.

She nodded and brought up her guard.

 

 

“If I yelled 'Boo', do you think they'd piss their pants?” Kaaras mused as another group of Orlesians rushed passed. It appeared that the entire city had heard they were coming, it was too much to hope for anything else the Seeker supposed, but this would mean trouble. They shouldn't have brought the girl.

“Pa! Don't be mean.” The said girl, Asha, protested from beneath the hood of her cloak. This was something she was to forced to wear on this trip, by now it was likely known that the Herald of Andraste had a child, and she would likely be targeted at some point. Precautions against an immediate and direct relation would help should such a thing occur today, hence the cloak. But why did they bring her again?

Oh yes, it was meant to be a 'learning experience', or something along those lines, Kaaras' explanation was long winded and verbose, perhaps that was on purpose? His reasoning was flimsy and she suspected it was not the truth, but she hadn't sensed any malicious intent, so Cassandra would allow them this... for now.

“Kidding. Just kidding,” The Qunari snickered at the girl, but lost his lightheartedness as angry shouting echoed off the buildings. Not a good sign. An Inquisition scout could be seen turning the corner and rushing towards the group, out of breath she attempted the Inquisition salute, but was doubled over.

“Lady... Cassandra...” The scout gasped, “The- the-tem- the Templars-” A pit of dread opened in the Seeker's stomach.

“Take a breath girl.” Kaaras spoke crossing his arms. The scout gratefully took a few moments to calm down.

“Now, what about the Templars?” The Seeker prodded.

The scout was composed enough to speak, “My lady, the Templars are here. They're massing near the square.”

What were they doing here? Were they here to return to the Chantry? Or maybe to strike against the Inquisition? This move was unexpected, and they were sorely unprepared, in addition to having a child with them. This could go south quickly, but the Templars' view on the Inquisition was still unknown, there was a chance they could be convinced to join, but she had to admit the chance was slim.

“The fact that we need to deal with the Chantry hasn't changed,” Kaaras brought her out of her thoughts, “If the Templars do cause trouble we'll have to deal with it. We can't back out now.” He was matter of fact, and a tad bit angry. “If something does happen, it would be best if not all of us were caught. If we split up, we stand the chance of some of us escaping,” He glanced around for objections. His plan made sense, it was a little vague perhaps, but it was better than nothing, nor did they mind him taking the lead in this. Cassandra felt that a choice would have to made either way, she was fine with it being this way.

“I assume that Varric, Asha, and I will be the ones to stay behind?” Solas asked.

“Yes, do you object?”

“No, your plan is sound. I will stay with the others.”

“Alright,” He looked down at the cloaked girl, who was fidgeting, unsure of herself, “Okay Asha,” Cassandra realized that this was the first time he had addressed the girl by name. It had an effect too, the girl straightened up, and raised her head to look at him, peering at him from under the hood. “Stay with Varric and Solas, okay? Do not leave their sight, alright?” His words were quiet and concerned.

“Yes sir,” She whispered. The corner of Kaaras' mouth raised, and reached to pat her head.

“I'm sure it'll be okay Gremlin. Don't you worry,” He paused his action, and crouched to pull the girl into a quick hug. 'Just in case.' The Seeker could almost hear the words. It made her heart ache. An uncomfortable shifting reminded Cassandra that the scout was still present, awaiting orders.

“Ready yourself to leave. If all of us are delayed, someone else will need to tell the others,” Cassandra quickly told the scout.

“Right away Lady Cassandra,” She saluted and rushed off to carry out her orders.

Kaaras straightened now, and faced her, a somber look on his face. “Lets get this show on the road, eh?” Nodding to him they turned to head towards the sounds of the crowd in the square. Just before they were out of eye shot Kaaras turned and gave a wave back to Asha.

“I shouldn't have brought her.” He told Cassandra immediately after they turned the corner.

“You're right. You shouldn't have.” She shot back, harsh and irritated. “This isn't a situation for children.”

His expression was pained, “I know. This is my doing. If anything happens, the blame will fall to me.” He bit the words out, likely feeling angry at himself, “I hadn't considered the arrival of the Templars, I only thought things I could of handled without dying.” Neither had had she, Cassandra realized reluctantly, but even without the Templars, the circumstances were not exactly safe.

“Why did you really bring her?” Now that the situation was like it is, she couldn't allow his petty feint. The crowd was visible now, and Cassandra could see several Chantry Mothers leading them, perfect, but no sign of the Templars yet.

“Ah, saw though that huh?” He rubbed the back of his neck, “Well, thinking about it now it's extremely stupid, but... for her birthday next week, she really wanted some fancy sweets. Like the ones here... in Val Royeaux. So I tried to make up a reason so she could come with us.” 

“You're joking” That was not a good reason to bring her here, it pissed her off. They entered the crowd now, already gaining the attention those around them.

He sighed, “Unfortunately, I'm not.”

 

“Well... that went better than expected,” Varric stated dryly, as the group headed out of the square. That was indeed true, they weren't attacked, and they succeeded in disrupting the Chantry's opinion of the Inquisition, even if it that was actually the result of the Templars rather abrupt departure from the city. Which brought confusion to the citizens, Cassandra could hear them murmuring in small groups, was it wise to listen to people who abandoned them?

What worried her the most, was how the Lord Seeker was acting. He refused to even listen to her, yes she had left the order, but he had never been one to shut out a comrade, or a former one at that, so completely. It was extremely unsettling, in the time she had known him he was an honorable man, something must of happened. Could it be that the conflict with the Mages was affecting him more than what was expected?

She continued this train of thought as they walked towards what she assumed was the exit to the city. Lost in her thoughts she didn't notice they had stopped, and almost walked right into Kaaras. Stepping back, a sweet smell reached her nose, and she looked for the source. In front of the group was a small bakery, though the window she could see the baker starring at them, a slightly fearful look on their face, probably from seeing several armed persons outside their shop. She turned to look at Kaaras, who wore an embarrassed smile. That's right Asha's gift. 

He was lucky, her earlier anger had dissipated, with her relief of the situation calming. That didn't mean it had completely disappeared, however. At seeing his look, and their current location, she let out a quiet sigh.

“I hope you guys don't mind a tiny diversion,” He reached into the pouch on his belt. Turning to Asha, who was practically bouncing at the moment, he brought his hand out, and handed the girl what looked like a small handful of silvers. The girl took the money, and clutched it to her chest. Kaaras chuckled, “Okay, go and pick something,” With permission granted the girl took off towards the door of the shop, yanking in open in her rush. “Don't break anything,” The Qunari called to her. The girl slowed down marginally, but continued to run, even inside the bakery. Kaaras shook his head at the girl's antics as the group settled in front of the shop to wait.

“A special occasion Herald?” Varric inquired 

“Indeed. That one,” He pointed in the window of the bakery, “Will be turning nine next week. This is the present she wanted,”

“A joyous time,” Solas said.

Kaaras gave a little half smile, “Hopefully. That hole in the sky doesn't make it easy.” He rolled his shoulders, “But neither does raising a kid. Maybe you guys should thank your lucky stars, you don't have any huh?” He had a full smile now. The group shared a chuckle. “Really though,” He continued, “I'm much happier than I would of have been, if she hadn't been my daughter.” That was an incredibly sweet thing to say, it seemed the fearsome visage of the Qunari was a complete lie, Cassandra smiled at that. His seemed to realize what he said, and it apparently embarrassed him. He started to rub the back of his neck, and wouldn't meet their eyes, “But uh... never mind about that,”

Varric smirked and went to tease the giant warrior, but was interrupted when bakery door finally reopened. Practically skipping, Asha returned with a bundle of her chosen present. Kaaras relaxed, moving past his embarrassment to greet the girl, “You're back. What'd you get Gremlin?”

The girl pulled her hood back to answer, having been under it for several hours her hair stuck up in strange places, quite an amusing sight. The Seeker heard Varric stifle a laugh. Holding up the bundle, Asha began to answer, “They had a whole bunch so I-”

The thunk of an arrow at their feet cut her off. In an instant, Kaaras stepped in front of the girl as the group drew their weapons, and scanned the area. After a period of silence Asha's small voice whispered, “Pa, there's a note on that arrow,” Looking down at the offending item, there indeed a note attached to the arrow. They relaxed a little putting their weapons away, but still tense with a potential threat about. Kaaras bent down to rip the arrow out of the ground, the Qunari's good mood had disappeared, and an angry frown colored his face. Taking the note off, Kaaras tossed the arrow aside to read the mysterious note.

After reading the note the Qunari's frown softened a bit, but didn't dissipate. Looking up to meet the Seeker's eyes, he held out the note for her to read, “Looks like we can't leave just yet.”


	6. Chapter 6

Before they could deal with the note on the arrow, a messenger approached them.

It seemed that one 'Madame de Fer', was extending an invitation to the Herald of Andraste to visit her at her salon this evening. Varric suggested that they see what the woman wanted before they dealt the note, “Wouldn't to visit a party after a fight now would we?” He said seeing as Kaaras was scowling into the distance.

When they arrived only Kaaras was allowed inside, the invitation was addressed only to him after all. So now the group awaited his return outside the building, listening to the party inside, and Asha's quiet rummaging as she opened her birthday present. When it was opened the girl smiled, but paused. Looking up at the three adults around her, she asked them meekly, “Would you guys like some?” She held out the bundle for them to see. It appeared the girl had bought herself a dozen cookies as her present. 

“Isn't this your birthday present, Bubbles?” Varric asked.

“Well,” She paused, “Only one then.” Varric chuckled and took one.

The girl turned the bag towards Solas, and he politely refused, “It's alright. Thank you, child.” So she moved on to the Seeker. Cassandra was a bit hungry, so she reached for a cookie herself, with a word of thanks.

It was not the best she had ever had, but to Asha it looked to be so, as she began shoveling the cookies into her mouth. It was almost amazing to see as she went through them.

“You can slow down,” Cassandra said, amused. Crumbs began to litter the ground, “They won't disappear,” Reluctantly Asha slowed down, but continued nonetheless, with what might have been an affirmative behind her stuffed face. The woman shook her head, a tiny smile on her face.

Asha paused between cookies to look at the Seeker, “Hey Lady, why do you have Vitaar?” 

Huh? "What?" 

"Your Vitaar," The girl brought a hand up to her eye, but seemed to lose attention as she began talking to herself, "But Pa said it was poisonous?" Her face scrunched up, "Did he lie?" She muttered. 

Oh. She automatically brought her own hand to her face, near the kohl that lined her eyes. "No, I don't think so. I don't know what that is." Cassandra told the girl. Did children always ask such random questions?

Asha's face relaxed, as she wiped the crumbs from her face, "Oh good. Thought he was pulling a fast one." She looked back up at the woman, "Does that help you in battle too Lady?" 

She... supposed? "In... a manner of speaking. Is that what this, Vitaar, does?" Was it similar to makeup? Or warpaint?

"Yeah! Pa and the others wear it before battle sometimes," Ah it was like warpaint then, but she couldn't help the image of Kaaras wearing his own kohl, appearing in her mind. It had the Seeker biting the inside of her cheek. Asha continued her explanation unawares, "He says it's for, 'intimidation, and personal motivation'.”She said the words carefully, like Kaaras had told her the exact words many times, she must of asked about it a lot, “It usually covers his whole face, though, not just his eyes." Cassandra now pictured of the large Qunari going into battle with a face powdered and painted, and couldn't help the laugh that bubbled up, she covered it with a cough, and attempted to school her expression. She really hoped that isn't what Vitaar looked like, she didn't want to laugh during battle. 

Varric smirked at her for a moment, and she was sure he would use this later to piss her off. She scowled back at him, her amusement dying for a moment, but she refused to allow him to completely ruin everything, so she elected to completely ignore him. She looked back to the girl, "The others? From the Valo-Kas? They all wear this?" 

Asha nodded, “Pa says that everyone makes their own when they're old enough." A little frown grew on her face, "And that I can't have any because I'm human. Vitaar is poisonous to humans. So, I thought if the Lady had some," She looked down, as she started to mumble. “Maybe I could get my own, I guess.”

She must really want this Vitaar stuff. "I understand, this is very important to you."

"Yeah.” She recovered a bit from her embarrassment, “Pa says I can have war paint though, instead, but-” 

Before Asha could say more, her father exited the estate, ending the conversation. A thoughtful expression covered his face, instead of the angry frown he had arrived with. It seemed that he had calmed himself from this afternoon. "Well," He started, as he came to stand in front of the group, "We have a new mage recruit. I hope you don't mind." 

\-----------------

As it turns out this 'Madame de Fer' wanted to join the Inquisition. Kaaras explained that the woman, also known as Vivienne, would help the Inquisition deal with the Orlesian court, since she was so highly ranked and was close enough to the Empress to provide some diplomatic leverage, something Josephine could definitely use. As much as Cassandra hated the Orlesian pass time, having someone to help navigate 'The Game' would be useful. The Qunari also explained that Vivienne would also bring her handful of followers, 'the last loyal mages of Thedas', and herself, for the Inquisition. Vivienne would travel to Haven in two days time, after wrapping up some personal business.

Now they would deal with the note from earlier that day. Since this was most likely a set up, Varric volunteered to stay behind with Asha, "I'll tell her about that dragon, and we'll be right as rain. Won't we Bubbles?" He said.

When they walked into the alley, the group spotted two armed men, but before they could say anything the men tensed and drew their weapons, shouting as they charged. 

Cassandra looked at the men after they were deftly cut down. These were little more than thugs, untrained and almost no threat to such experienced fighters. Flicking some of the blood off her sword, the Seeker returned it to its sheath, and stepped over the bodies. These were likely look outs, not the main force of whatever was going on here, so they continued down the alley and though a set of doors. 

As soon they were opened however, a fireball streaked towards the trio and they were forced to duck. It was mage, and pompous one at that. He began to yell about his importance and his infallibility. It was exceedingly annoying, and Cassandra actually began to focus her abilities to shut him up, before an arrow entered his throat. 

Now an elf stood before them, with a jagged haircut and a shirt to match. She was an unexpected sight, a bow strapped to her back, and a puzzling way of speaking. Her name was Sera, and she took the guards... breeches? 

What? Was that a joke? 

The pounding of approaching feet signaled the arrival of said guards, and when she saw them they really didn't have trousers. It was about the strangest fight Cassandra had ever been in. Between the pants less enemies and Sera's cackling, the Seeker decided she just wanted to be away from this place as soon as possible. She let out a sigh as the last guard fell. 

The Elf, Sera, immediately approached them again, laughing and snorting as she did, "No breeches!" She was almost doubled over, before her strange laugh started to slow. Cassandra really wanted to go to sleep. When the Elf finally calmed herself, she sucked in a breath, "So, the Inquisition... I want in." She grinned at them. Cassandra could feel a headache forming. 

Kaaras answered first, "You... do?" He was skeptical, "And why would you want to do that?" 

"Its all messed up innit? The world I mean. The Inquisition is putting it back together. I can help." The Elf insisted. 

"How?" Cassandra questioned as her head began to pound. 

This apparently annoyed Sera, as she wrinkled her nose, "Every lump like that one," She flicked a hand to the dead mage, "Hurts the little people. Friends tell me whats what, and lumps get covered in feathers and left to dry, or dead. Depends." She pointed a thumb at herself, "I join, and they talk about fat heads making trouble for the Inquis-a-wits." 

Kaaras looked over at the Seeker, and met her eyes, a question in his own. He wanted her input on this, but she couldn't decide whether to allow her in or not. Her 'friends' could be useful, Leliana could likely use any information they could provide, however the question was Sera herself, she was an unknown party. The Inquisition needed help, yes, but did they need this help? Cassandra didn't know. She shook her head in a noncommittal fashion, she would leave this to him. The situation was complicated, and the stress of the day, in addition to the late hour, were not helping things. She agreed with his judgment to let Madame Vivienne join, and she would follow it here as well. He had done well so far.

He blinked at her once, looking a little surprised, but he nodded his understanding, and turned back to the impatient Elf. "Alright Sera. We could use you, and your 'friends'" His tone business like.

Sera pumped a fist, "Alright! Get in good, while you still have your breeches!" She started to giggle wildly again, "Breeches! Hahaha!" The Elf began to back up, "This is gonna be fun," and then she left the alley. Without them. The Seeker sighed.

"Was that wise?" Solas asked from behind the Qunari. 

Kaaras turned his head to glance at the elven mage, "Maybe not, but we can always make her leave if it doesn't turn out." His face hardened, "Though, if she passes a note like that again, I will throw her in a lake." Cassandra believed him, without a doubt. 

 

\-------

 

Just before they exited to the port that night, they were unexpectedly approached by the rebel mage leader, Fiona. She extended invitation to visit the current mage base at Redcliffe, to discuss a potential alliance. It was extremely suspicious, and not at all that easy, and only added to the Seeker's headache. She would be thankful to be at Haven, and hit the training dummies a few hundred times, or have another spar with Kaaras . Things were easier when she could hit something. 

On the ship, everyone was forced to share a single room, including their newest member, Sera, who appeared unceremoniously just before the ship sailed, plopping herself between everyone like she hadn't disappeared without a word. The Elf's addition had the room full to capacity, with all but one of the bunk beds being taken, only because Kaaras' horns were too long to fit between the bunks. He had taken to sleeping on a stool in the corner instead.

The arrangement was fine for the night, except for one thing, because of the late hour, and the last of her cookies being eaten, Asha would not go to sleep. She chattered on for a full forty-five minutes before she was forced to play something called the 'Quiet game' until she fell asleep. A blessing to everyone that night.

A day passed on the ship, and still the Seeker's headache continued to persist, even after sleeping. She was unable to stop thinking about what happened, and what was said.

It was mid day and the Inquisition members separated to wait out the trip on their own, and Cassandra found herself staring into the bottom of her mug of... something, she couldn't remember what, but it didn't really matter. It sat untouched and still except rocking of the ship. 

"Lady Cassandra?" The sudden voice startled her. Looking up she found Kaaras, half smiling at her surprise, "Sorry, didn't mean to surprise you." 

"No it's fine," She sighed and rubbed her temples, headache pounding, "Did you need something?" 

"Well,” He seemed a little unsure now, “Asha and I wanted to know if you'd like to play a game of Wicked Grace?" He waved around a deck of cards. 

“Wait,” Her eyebrows furrowed, "You taught your nine year old daughter to gamble?" Well almost nine

His eyes widened, and he shook his free hand in denial, "Oh no, no, no. I didn't teach her. Shokrakar and Taarlok did, the bastards," Those were probably other Valo-Kas members. He shook his head with a sigh, “We don't even really gamble anyway, we just use whatever is in our pockets. No money, and no clothing.” Hmmm, these kinds of game did tend to leave sore losers... bare. He smiled to himself, “So you won't be, stripped, of your possessions,” He chuckled when she rolled her eyes. “You'll get everything back. Promise.” He reassured her, turning more serious. "But really, we thought that it might take your mind off of what happened yesterday. You were thinking about it so hard, Varric couldn't even annoy you."

The Seeker to relaxed, but felt a little awkward now. The offer was kind, but it had been a very long time since she had played Wicked Grace. "I... do not remember most of the rules." She admitted slowly, feeling a bit embarrassed. 

He smiled easily now, "That's alright. We can go over the whole game forward and backwards if you like," When her face remained unchanged he continued, "If you really don't want to play I'll leave you alone,” He tapped the side of his head, “But your head will probably feel better if you do." 

She realized that she hadn't stopped rubbing her temples, and immediately dropped her hands, "Noticed that did you? I... suppose one game won't hurt," Cassandra conceded, and quickly tacked on, “Thank you,” This was appreciated, and almost anything to distract her would be welcome. She stood up from the table, leaving behind her mystery drink. 

He brightened, "Of course." He put a fist over his heart like he was making an oath, "This Vashoth is here to serve, my lady." He told her jestingly. He was ridiculous, and she had a small smile now. He pointed a thumb behind him, "We'll set up in a storage room, shouldn't be much traffic there," Then turned to walk to said room, ducking slightly so his horns wouldn't scape against the ceiling. The ship, after all, wasn't built with qunari in mind. Kaaras continued to talk as they made their way, walking past a few of ships crew, "I would try to gather the others, but Sera went missing again, Solas is asleep, and I think Varric is feeling a bit seasick." 

"He was like that on the way from Kirkwall as well."

"Yeah? Bet he was easier to handle then."

“Indeed,” She remembered how he could barely sass her on that trip, he still found the strength of course, but it was a much quieter journey. 

They reached the said room and entered. Inside Asha sat atop a barrel, swinging her feet. When she saw them she grinned, and jumped off her makeshift stool, with her hands on her hips, “So, you think the Lady can help you, hmmm?” She said, voice low and gravelly, like a villain from a storybook.

Kaaras grinned back as he began shifting crates in the room about, “Of course. You'll be defeated yet. I assure you.” He turned back gestured at a crate for Cassandra to sit on, and then took his own across from the door. The Seeker settled across from the girl, who began to rub her hands together when she returned to her seat, and Cassandra half expected her to start laughing loudly. 

Kaaras set the cards on the table and began to shuffle them, “But first, lets go over the game, shall we?”

Asha stopped her act of the evil overlord, “What? Why?” She asked, surprised.

“Because, Gremlin,” He said, face serious, “We have to make sure our Lady here doesn't cheat.”

“I do not cheat.” She denied immediately, perhaps too quickly, being so used to Varric's needling. Asha glanced between them. Kaaras' expression quickly cracked and a goofy smile suddenly covered his face, betraying his true intention. The Seeker had the sudden sensation that she was looking at the sun, shiny and bright, and very, very, attractive. She stiffened, and felt her face heat up. Confusion settled in her stomach.

“That's what they all say my Lady.” He shuffled the deck one more time, seemingly unaware of what had happened, “But you might want to after this.”

“And why would I want that?” She said, thanking the Maker her voice stayed steady. She had to bury this.

“Because of me.” Asha answered, a toothy grin covered her face. Cassandra raised an eyebrow.

“Indeed,” The Qunari nodded sagely, “Now, tell me what you remember my Lady.”

 

\----------

It appeared that Kaaras was a much better teacher of cards than battle forms, but that could be because Asha was helping. It was difficult to decide which, but they covered the game quickly allowing them to actually start the game. Cassandra's headache did indeed disappear, and she managed to get her face to a normal color, both of which she was thankful. It was strange being pulled into the duo's camaraderie, but she was feeling better then the last few months had allowed. It was warm and comfortable, but she couldn't quite shake the worry about her unusual reaction. She needed to think about it, and not shove it under a rug so it could fester as she had been doing. However, doing so now would be unwise, so she resolved to focus on the game at hand.

Not that she won of course. 

Asha raked in another pot. This time actually laughing like the villain she pretended to be.

“How did she do that?” Cassandra was almost completely sure she had a winning hand, but...?

The Qunari crossed his arms and leaned away from the table, looking a bit put out despite expecting the outcome. “I have no idea. She won't tell me.”

“And I never will.” The girl sang, as she happily hoarded her temporary winnings. He sighed.

“Did she cheat?” The Seeker asked Kaaras, feeling disbelief at the girl's display. That couldn't be possible, right?

He shook his head solemnly, “I don't think so. I've checked before too.” He leaned forward after a moment, “Okay. Game change. Gremlin, hand back your winnings,” Asha whined her disapproval, but did as told, carefully handing back their knives, potions, Cassandra was sure that one of them was actually dragon's blood, and various herbs, while Asha kept her own things. Which consisted of sticks, rocks, buttons, and a tiny pocket knife. Why did she have those? Did children always have sticks and rocks?

“Okay. Now...” Kaaras gathered the cards, and started shuffling them again, “How about... Old Maid, or.... Go Fish? Gremlin? Lady Cassandra?”

“Old Maid!” Asha declared, lightly banging her fists on the crate. Kaaras looked to the Seeker.

“Old Maid will do I think,” She knew the rules to that one, “And just 'Cassandra' is fine you know.” She said, and looked at the girl, “That means you too,”

Kaaras began to deal out the cards now, “Alright... Cassandra.” He said testing her name without the usual 'Lady'. “Usually, the leader demands a title.”

Shaking her head, Cassandra took her cards, “I do not lead the Inquisition. It has no leader. Something I had hoped to remedy before now.” With the Hero of Ferelden's disappearance, and no leads on Hawke, they would have to choose another. An Inquisitor would be needed to make decisions in the moment, they couldn't always debate like they did.

“No? But you created it, right?” Asha said nothing, and patiently waited for them to finish, feeling that this conversation wasn't for an almost nine year old.

“I've always been told, 'Cassandra you are too brash. You must think before you act', and they are right. I misjudged you, did I not? I cannot make the same mistake for the Inquisition.” She had wanted to kill him before. Had almost killed him. He had been exactly what they needed, when they needed it, and she almost ruined all of it. If she did the same with the Inquisition? She dared not think about it.

Now here he sat, playing card games with her and his daughter, like it had always been this way, and he had never been her prisoner. Nothing like Varric who would likely never let it go. “That is something I regret. I am sorry.” She felt undeserving of the warm feeling that had curled in her chest. 

It seemed that surprised him, and he looked at her, several emotions passing over his face, before his expression settled on understanding, and suddenly she was looking at the sun again, sweet and small this time. Stop. “I see. Thank you Cassandra. I appreciate that. Truly.” Then turned to look at his cards, sparing her, as the seriousness of the moment was lost, “Now, who wants to go first?”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can follow me on tumblr :) nugget-bones.tumblr.com
> 
>  
> 
> (5/23/16) New content near the end of the chapter!

They needed magic to the close the breach, and Grand Enchanter Fiona's invitation provided the perfect opportunity to approach the reclusive rebels. That was the problem however. It was too perfect. It was a likely trap, and it made everyone nervous. Cullen had insisted on approaching the Templars to suppress the Breach, and as much as Cassandra would like to do so, the likeliness of them even agreeing to see the Inquisition was slim, given their encounter with the Lord Seeker in Val Royeux. It was regrettable, but the Templars could not be relied upon.

So it was decided they would approach the Rebels, cautiously of course, but only after they did some preparation. A few weeks would be needed to train, and arm the few Templars that had joined the Inquisition. Commander Cullen would be handling this of course, it added to his current workload, but he did not complain.

In the mean time the Herald, Solas, Varric, and herself would follow leads on potential allies, and other matters. Leliana had suggested searching for a Grey Warden by the name of Blackwall, in the Hinterlands. It seemed that all the Grey Wardens in Ferelden and Orlais have disappeared, not just the Hero of Ferelden, and no word as to their whereabouts. Grey Wardens always had strange circumstances around them, but the timing was... curious. It seemed that Blackwall was the only one who hadn't disappeared, inquires needed to be made.

The journey back to the Hinterlands, allowed them to the see some of the effects of their previous trip. No bodies on the road, and only a spare few refugees were seen, good signs of the Inquisition's progress.

“I didn't think you could make friends, Seeker.” Varric said from his horse. “I thought you could only beat up innocent bystanders.” Cassandra glanced at the Dwarf, and back to their other companions who were engrossed in a talk about the Fade.

“I do not beat up anyone.” She snapped. “Nor are you innocent.”

“Really? Could of fooled me.” She rolled her eyes, irritation rising as he continued to needle her for the event. His interrogation had been a bit rougher then most, true, but he had never been beaten. Only frightened. She had deemed the scare tactic necessary to get any true information out of the Dwarf. He was quite infamous for using his words to his advantage, and along with his willingness to protect his close friend, made for a very tough persona to gain any useful knowledge. 

“What is this about Varric?”

“Nothing Seeker, I just wondered how you got on such good terms with our dear Herald. You almost chopped off his head I hear.”

“I have done nothing out of the ordinary,”

“Truly? So you didn't trick him into Wicked Grace on the ship? I maybe my seasickness was making me hallucinate. Am I missing something?” He paused, and added casually, “Perhaps your secret weakness for fathers perhaps?”

Anger immediately bubbled to the surface, and strangled noise escaped her throat, causing the two in font to glance back briefly. Grinding her teeth, a dangerous edge in her voice, “What do you want Varric?”

“I could give you advice if you want. Help smooth the process.” He said ignoring her question, “It wouldn't take much, just a few nudges here and there.”

“There is no Process.” She growled, her fists clenched, causing the leather of her gloves to strain, “I suggest, Dwarf. That if you know what's good for you. You will be silent.”

It seemed his self preservation instinct had abandoned him, “I'm just saying, Seeker, things might move a little faster,”

She was half way to shoving him off his horse, before Kaaras appeared between them, having pulled hard the reins to match their speed, forcing his horse between theirs. He frowned at the Dwarf, “Alright that's enough!” The Qunari let out a frustrated sigh, and did not look amused in the slightest, “One of you. Go ride with Solas,” He ordered.

"Okay Herald." Varric agreed quickly. Cassandra glowered after him as he spurred his horse to trot alongside the Elven mage.

A few minutes passed in silence as they continued their way towards the Hinterlands.

"So... Want to tell me what that was about?" Kaaras asked evenly, so as not to stir any volatile emotions that she had remaining.

"It is nothing. Just Varric trying to annoy me further, and succeeding." She sighed and passed a hand over her face.

"Ah." He let the silence hang, as he looked into the forest as they past, sounding far away when he did speak, “That... can always happen to the best of us. I understand.” He focused now, “Two members of my Kith used to argue like that.” 

Kith must be the Valo-Kas. “Really?”

“Yeah, it wasn't so bad at the beginning, but they only got worse. Eventually, we had to arrange a fist fight for them. Let them beat the argument out of each other, you know. It worked for them, they only bicker a bit now. I would suggest the same, but...” He stopped and glanced at her, an easy smile on his lips, the mood lightening significantly as he did, “I don't think Varric would survive such a thing. Dead men tell no tales after all.”

“So what would you suggest then?” She asked, ignoring the tingling under her skin. 

“Hmmm. Well,” He paused to think, “You could try... reaching out?” She raised an eyebrow at him. “I mean, he is mad at you for something, right? And he keeps pushing your buttons because of that, but neither of you have really done anything to fix it, right?”

“I suppose not, no.” They have only gone though a cycle of arguing, and more passive aggressive insults. Admittedly the cause of this circumstance was indeed her fault, in part. She could feel the itch of irritation and as well as begrudging understanding.

“I don't really know why you guys are like this, but one of you has to stop. It might as well be you.” He told her sincerely. “Nor will it be easy. You guys really don't like each other.”

“How could you tell?” She said sarcastically, making him chuckle. She rolled the advice back and forth in her mind, “I will consider this. Thank you.”

“Of course. I am good for other things besides fighting.” He leaned over to her, a hand on his chest. She laughed, he smiled and straightened, facing forward again, continuing their way to the Hinterlands.

\-----------

Blackwall had no answers. His apparent isolation had cut him off from any news of the other Wardens. The trip might have of been fruitless had the Warden not offered his services to the Inquisition. He seemed honorable and was a capable fighter, his recruitment would definitely be beneficial. So they headed back to Haven, with no answers, but a new ally in tow.

\----------

Breathing hard, Cassandra and Kaaras halted their spar, having let it go on far too long, they risked seriously injuring each other, if they did not. She had taken a nasty hit to her side, but had given the hit right back in the space between his neck and shoulder, both fatal hits in a real fight. They would call it a draw for today.

The Qunari let out a breath and struck his sword in the ground to lean upon it. The Seeker took a slow breath, relaxing her muscles as she sheathed her sword, and dropped her shield to the ground. Kaaras looked from his spot, “Good fight Cassandra.” He said through his breathing, and then called to the sideline, “Hey! Did you pay attention?” He received a nod from his daughter between the training dummies, “Alright, you know the drill.”

Asha answered seriously, if a bit unsure, “Okay, well, you... lost grip and didn't bring your guard up fast enough? And Cassandra... over extended her sword arm, I think? Leaving her side open?” The assessment didn't surprise the older woman, this was something that Kaaras and Asha had done after almost every spar the two adults would have, and the Seeker would often see the duo later in the day when she would need to speak to Cullen, watching the recruits train, trying to learn from their mistakes, just like now. 

The girl was usually correct when she gave her report, there were more issues than the ones Asha would list of course, but anything major would almost always be touched upon. Cassandra supposed living with mercenaries tended to cause a keen eye for battle early in life.

“Correct... for the most part. You pass. Good job.” Kaaras congratulated her, before rubbing his shoulder, right where Cassandra's hit landed, “Now, could you bring me the water skin please?”

Obliging, Asha picked up the water she brought to the field, and walked over to hand it to him. He thanked her, and took a long drink. Cassandra then became acutely aware of exactly how warm it suddenly was. 

Their spar had taken quite a bit longer then usual. Kaaras, having gotten used to fighting someone proficient with a shield, could no longer be beaten easily. Instead of the usual brute strength he employed most often, he performed precision strikes in an attempt to knock her over. This resulted in a very hard fought match, that left them both winded. Though it was as the Qunari tipped his head back to drink, the dark grey of his skin shining in the sun, when an errant bead of sweat caught her eye. 

It started above his brow, following his temple and slowly traveled to his cheek, changing direction as it came to the divots and dents of his scars. She traced its path with her eyes, as it followed the line of his jaw, and dropped on to his neck, over his throat, before finally disappearing beneath the slight 'v' of his armor. 

“-ssandra?” She looked up, and found Kaaras staring back. She felt the uncomfortable pit of embarrassment open in her stomach as she realized what had happened. Maker give her strength. Forcing her face to stay neutral, she hoped the blush would be taken as an effect from their spar, and not for what it was.

Pretending everything was normal, she answered, “I'm sorry, what?” She was almost sure she passed off the occurrence as a short lapse in attention, but Kaaras' raised eyebrow and the mischievous set of his mouth, told her otherwise. The Seeker cursed her wondering eyes.

“I just wanted to know if you wanted a drink. I thought you might be thirsty.” He offered the skin to her, playing along with her ploy for now it seemed.

“No, I... I'm fine. Thank you.” She shifted awkwardly, wanting the pit to either disappear or swallow her whole.

“Alright, suit your self.” He tied the water skin to his belt, and looked at Asha, who had turned to stare into the crowd of training soldiers when nothing of their conversation caught her attention, “Hey Gremlin, be still for a second. You have a piece of fuzz on your back.”

Cassandra looked at the back of the girl's coat, and didn't see anything.

The girl didn't notice this of course and stayed still as asked. The Qunari crouched behind Asha, and instead of getting an indistinguishable piece of lint, scooped up a bit of snow, pulled the collar of her coat back, and dropped the snow in.

Immediately, Asha squealed. Kaaras howled as she began to freak out, squirming at the shocking sensation. The Seeker covered her mouth to halt her own laugh, but was internally grateful for the action, attention shifting so she could recover. The Qunari, however, had little reservation, and continued to crack up, eyes closed, and half way to laying on snow covered ground.

After the surprise had worn off, Asha whirled around, grabbed two whole handfuls of snow, and shoved them directly into Kaaras' face. 

Sudden silence followed. The Qunari didn't move and let most of the snow fall from his face. Asha tensed as he blinked once, expression still, before he spoke, “Alright then. If that's how you want to play then...” and using both arms, began gathering a large pile of the powdery substance together, but before it could get to any significant amount, the girl bolted, leaving the adults behind as she ran towards the gate to escape.

He chuckled as he stood, wiping the rest off his face. 

She peered at him now, contemplating the familiar and unfamiliar feelings that often accompanied their time to together, and against her better judgment decided to indulge her curiosity, “It has come to my attention,” He turned to regard her, “That I know very little about you.”

He tilted his head to one side. "I figured Leliana would have told you everything?"

"She does have a frightening amount of information on you, yes." It seemed like the Spymaster had something everyone actually, the thought was strangely normal. Sort of. "I only ever skimmed her initial report of you, when you were still suspect. I knew your name and your job as a mercenary."

“Oh, well... What do you want to know?”

“I suppose where you're from is a good start?”

He smiled a bit, “I was raised in the Free Marches, in a tiny settlement outside of Ostwick, made up of only two human families and my parents and I. Remoteness made it harder for the Qunari to find us."

That was surprisingly... simple, "Because you are Tal-Vashoth?"

"Correct... but really only my parents were Tal-Vashoth.” He explained, “My mother was a Tamassaran, mothers and teachers under the Qun, and my father was an Athlok, a laborer, sheep herding mostly. They managed to escape shortly before I was born, making them Tal-Vashoth, true rebels, and myself Vashoth, someone who has never rebelled, but one who should be dealt with sooner, rather than later. The distinction between Qunari, Tal-Vashoth, and Vashoth usually means little to humans and elves. Horns are horns and all that." He reached up and flicked the plating covering his own horns, letting out a short metallic sound. “But I would probably equate it to being called Orlesian when you're from Ferelden.”

She could not help cringing a little. Ferelden hated Orlais, “I see...”

He noticed her reaction “Most humans don't get a chance to talk to one of us, let alone get to know us well. So when it's coming from someone 'outside', it can be a bit irritating, but I understand. So don't worry about it.” He reassured her, “And about you huh? Where do you hail from?”

“Nevarra, but I saw very little of it,” Mostly she remembered the dark and musty halls that made up her home, accompanied by the moaning of the dead that often echoed through the corridors.

“Really? You weren't a captive princess or anything right?” He joked, but did not know the near truth of his words.

“That is not from the truth actually,” She said plainly, feeling the distaste she had for the subject rising, “The Pentaghasts take blood very seriously. It would not have been prudent to allow one of their own to go traipsing about the country side with her brother.” She frowned at the bitterness of the memory.

He held up a hand, “Wait, wait... Like the royal Pentaghasts?” He looked very surprised, both eyebrows raised.

She sighed, “Yes, but it matters little now,” She told him firmly, “I am a Seeker, before I am a Pentaghast,”

That snapped him back, “Yes, of course. I've taken a few contracts from a couple of Pentaghasts. Always made sure I knew exactly who they were. Bunch of assholes.” He frowned for a moment before he realized his words, “I m-mean... no offense intended of course, you are nothing like them.” The Vashoth smiled at her apologetically.

“No, you are not wrong. They are assholes.” She deadpanned. He let out a surprised laugh, relaxing at the admission. “But I am surprised you didn't know before. I know our introduction was under the best of circumstances, but it has never been a secret.”

“That's my mistake. Vashoth don't really have family names, and sometimes I forget to ask. Sorry. I know the significance of names is different for humans, and I know Pentaghast is the ruling name in Nevarra right now.” He paused, “Does that mean you're in line for the throne?”

She scoffed, “Hardly. 78th in line is hardly something to really consider,” She dismissed, “How do Vashoth handle names?” She changed the subject, not wanting to really discuss her family.

He replied, taking her hint, “Names are picked or given by others, there isn't really a tradition for it. Usually the name you hear is the only name they have.”

“And you have two.” She stated.

“Yes, 'Karaas' came from my parents. It's 'navigator' in the common tongue, their way of wishing me luck in life, I suppose.”

“And Adaar?”

His demeanor dampened slightly, “'Fire thrower'. Given by a previous kith.” He gave a bittersweet smile, “I wasn't always the charming individual you see before you.”

His following silence was very telling. The topic of his second name appeared to be unpleasant. She wouldn't press him. “What about your daughter? Her name sounds different from your own.” Asha sounded like it came from the common tongue, and not the Qunlat roots his seemed to have had.

“Because I didn't give her that name,” He answered, “Her mother did.”

That surprised her. She had wondered, but... “You have never spoken about her.” She stated carefully, unsure of his reaction. His demeanor didn't change, and he continued to stare back at her solemnly.

“You're right.” He said, “I haven't. I... don't speak of her very often.” He looked away. The admittance falling heavily between them. Cassandra shifted her weight. Another bad topic for him it seemed, it appeared something happened to the mother. He continued, looking anywhere but her eyes, “Someone always asks of course. Nosy bastards wanting to know our business. The 'novelty' of a qunari father and a human daughter is just too damn interesting.” Venom seeping into his voice at the end, glaring at some unseen face in the distance. His hands clenched briefly.

She said nothing, expression smoothing into a stony neutrality, and watched the anger wash over him. This was not directed at her, Cassandra knew, but she could not help tensing at his tone. The cold wind now biting as it blew past.

His eyes returned to hers finally, blue of his eyes turbulent as he glared. It was moment before he closed them, and a hand came up to rub his face. He exhaled loudly, an attempt to relax, and opened his eyes to look at her. A serious and apologetic expression replaced the old one. “I'm sorry my lady.” He said, “I don't mean to be angry, nor direct it at you. It just... comes out,” He took a deep breath, “The last time... I... Well...” He stopped, and grimaced. 

Cassandra realized that she herself had acted in such a manner at times. Times when Anthony was at the forefront of her thoughts. Asha's mother was dead, she realized, her suspicions confirmed. Sympathy flooded her veins, easing her posture. 

“But, you asked about Asha's name...” He paused, composing himself, “Her mother told me before... that the name comes from an old queen in Antiva. The 'Queen Mother of Thedas'* She said.” His voice soft, as sadness dimmed his presence, “She... had appreciation for history.” 

“Her memory pains you.” Cassandra stated quietly. Impulsively she reached out laid a hand on his arm, “I'm sorry.” She said, squeezing his bicep over the exposed leather of his armor. She looked into his eyes now, hoping to convey her own loss.

Kaaras held her gaze, and studied her face, “Thank you,” He said finally, releasing the heaviness that surrounded them, allowing the wind to flow easily between them, no longer harsh as it passed. 

A comfortable silence settled over them for several heartbeats before one side of the qunari's mouth lifted, along with one eyebrow as he stared at her.

Feeling a small bit of dread in her stomach at the sight, Cassandra simply stared back and waited. He didn't say anything directly, but simply glanced down at his arm. Where her hand still rested.

A tingle raced up her arm. Resisting the urge to jerk it to her side, she slowly retracted her arm, and purposefully avoided his mischievous eyes, but his following chuckle irritated her, and combined with her embarrassment. 

“Don't you have a daughter to deal with?” She snapped. 

He continued to chuckle, “I do indeed my lady Cassandra.” They each reached to collect their weapons. 

As she stood she could see the sun hanging much higher in the sky than she had expected, the Seeker realized that this practice had taken a much longer time then usual. She sighed internally, brushing aside her irritation, her meeting with Cullen over troop reports would probably take much longer now, and unpleasant affair in itself now to be drawn out. Not wanting to prolong the inevitable she turned to leave, when Kaaras reached out to stop her, a hand gently touching her arm.

Looking at him now, his good humor had left again, “Really though, I am sorry.” He said, eyes serious, “I didn't mean to unload my issues on you.”

Her earlier irritation completely evaporated as she looked at him, “It's alright,” She said and hesitated a moment, “I do believe... friends... listen to each others problems.” She said slowly, realizing that she indeed saw him as a friend. She found his presence to be... enjoyable, he offered a pleasant rest from the demons, or the war, and even Varric's needling. She would indulge in that, but anything more than that... was an impossibility. She was sure of that.

The answering grin she received nearly sucked the breath out of her lungs, threw thoughts off kilter, and when Cullen asked her later at their meeting if she was alright, she said she had over exerted herself in training. She was a liar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Asha Compana 'Queen Mother of Thedas' was an actual person in Thedas, you can check the wiki. She's not the reason I picked Asha's name, but I thought the happenstance was funny.
> 
> Okay so I realized a few weeks ago that the old chapter ending was way too dramatic for what I wanted so I decided to extend the chapter a bit. It's not a whole chapter I know, but I thought I added a good bit of content. So I hope you guys like it.
> 
> Also how would you guys feel about a chapter in a different POV? Or would like me to just continue in Cassandra's POV? Let me know! I'll probably decide over the next week or so.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Make sure to check the end of the last chapter. I've added and changed content since i posted it.
> 
> Also new Pov!

Working for the Inquisition brought Kaaras a bit more peace of mind than the usual work contacts. Not that he didn't love the Valo-Kas, and the work they did, he did. Kaaras loved every minute he spent with them, but the work didn't give him the same feeling the Inquisition gave him, nor was a stable place to rest, and a steady income to match anything to sneeze at. He felt good being here, despite the constant squabbling the humans seemed to do.

In fact he could see a few of them arguing right now, from where he sat outside the cabin he and the Gremlin shared. It seemed Haven's trader had set prices a few silvers too high, and now two humans and an elf were laying into the man. His face twisted a little in amusement as he watched. It was the traders own fault, Kaaras could hear the outraged customers shouts from here, and the prices were indeed much higher than what you'd seen elsewhere, even if you included the current crisis from the hole in the sky.

The thought brought a light buzz from his left hand, and he turned his palm over to look at the Mark. That was the only thing he could call it, or anyone could call it. The lack of a name or anything bothered him, since no one seemed to know anything about it. Even Solas, who seemed to know something about everything. It seemed that only thing they knew for sure was that it was connected to the demon spewing rip in the sky. Which is very reassuring.

"-s a pretty color." Asha mumbled from against his side where she dosed lightly.

"It is a pretty color." He agreed, and gently ran his right hand over her head, letting the familiar smell of her hair drift to his nose, along with something that told him she had convinced one of the Chantry sisters to slip her some sweets again. He smiled and shook his head. The Mark had worried the girl at first, but he reassured her it was safe and she had relaxed, he had just conveniently left out the part of it almost draining the life out of him. That definitely wouldn't have helped matters. Kaaras really hoped it stayed like it was, the Gremlin really didn't need it killing him.

He went back to watching the spectacle the humans and elf were making. Even while being ganged up upon by three others the trader refused to back down, and the Vashoth admired his resolve, but he really did need to lower his prices.

Watching on for a few more minutes, he saw that the situation seemed to be escalating now. Kaaras could see one of the disgruntled customers reach back for a punch. As annoying as his business practices were, the trader didn't deserve a beating quite yet. Kaaras made to stand up, and settle the situation, perhaps put his title as 'Herald' to good use, but the action turned out to be unnecessary. A familiar shout froze the four, and the Voshoth smirked.

He could see her steady and angry march towards the group, who now stood stiffly with heads bowed as she berated the lot.

Seeing Cassandra bring the hammer down, and fix matters in such a straight forward manner usually brought him good deal of admiration... as well as a few other feelings.

When each side had been sufficiently reamed, the Seeker dismissed the two humans and elf, likely with orders to be on watch for sometime, and gave the trader a glare, along with what was probably a threat to find someone else to trade in Haven. She was pleasantly predicable that way.

As the group dispersed, the Seeker glanced around, making sure the scene wasn't too disruptive and everyone was working as they should, she caught his eyes. Kaaras grinned and waved at her. She gave a short nod in acknowledgment, seemingly completely moved on from her embarrassment from the previous day, and left, continuing on her way to her destination, likely a meeting with Leliana.

"The Lady is nice," Asha spoke, a little more awake this time.

"She is," He agreed again, holding in a laugh at the irony.

"Varric says you like her."

"Varric says a lot of things. He hasn't told you about his friend Hawke yet has he?" He said, deflecting her question.

Asha straightened to frown up at him, "No." She denied, apparently not in the mood to play, and he knew, for a fact, she had asked for the story at least twice.

He dropped his hand on her head, pressing down slightly, "Alright Gremlin, and if I did? What would that mean?" He asked her instead.

Her frown deepened as she looked off for a minute. "I don't know." She huffed, "Something."

"Don't worry about it, okay?" He said brushing Asha's hair lightly with his fingers, as she settled against him again, returning to her little cat nap. If he had indeed felt like getting into it, he would have said yes, that he did in fact like the Seeker. She was brave, and honorable, and if he was being quite honest, incredibly attractive. He always had a weakness for warriors, the more serious the better. It made him want to crack their careful composure, let them live a little, even if it never went beyond a few jokes, and smile.

Cassandra was definitely one of those people. She was always in 'Inquisition' mode, everything she did was for the cause, it appeared that she never took time for herself, and the closest person to a friend she had appeared to be Commander Cullen. It looked... lonely. Throwing all that she had into this rag tag group of misfits. He admired that, and felt compelled to approach her. Maybe crack a joke or two, throw her day off, and maybe get on her good side at the very least. Jobs always went easier when you're nice to the boss.

He was surprised to see how well they got along when he did speak with her. Especially when she had tried to wring his neck when he first saw her. An amused half smile appeared on his face at the memory.

He was even more surprised later when she actually apologized for her actions, it won her many points in his book. Under her hard shell he found her to be awkward, and adorable, especially when she turned red. He loved when humans did that, since vashoth and qunari can't really change color quite like that, it was interesting to watch. It was even better that she mostly did it on her own with out any prompting on his part.

Kaaras knew it was because she was attracted to him. Oh he definitely knew about that. He could sense it easily, but he could also see how she dealt with that fact. He always saw the realization reach her eyes, and how she immediately buried it with a distraction. She was rejecting her own feelings, and if what he learned about her these last few weeks held true, it was probably mostly out of duty.

He could understand that, especially with the situation being as hectic as it was. A hole in the sky, Mages and Templars in an open war, and an entire freshly put together organization to run. It was no surprise she held herself back.

Besides, he didn't know how long they'd even stay in this place. Sure the Inquisition felt like a solid movement right now, but once the Breach was sealed, what then? The Inquisition could lose steam and disband under all the pressure from the Chantry, or they could accidentally start a war and have the worlds armies knocking on their door.

He didn't really think any of that would happen of course, but he had to keep it in mind. In those cases any pursuit of the Seeker wouldn't lead anywhere substantial. Which is he wanted for himself, substantial. Short dalliances had lost their appeal a long time ago, they were only a waste of energy now, nor did he want his personal relationships to affect Asha negatively, her life didn't need any more instability. However the opportunity to fluster Lady Cassandra was too good to pass up. He wondered how red she would turn when he'd try to do it on purpose.

"Your Worship!"

Kaaras stiffened at the call, pulling him out of his thoughts, and resisted the urge to pull a face, he really wished they'd pick something else to call him. Looking up the Vashoth spotted one of the camp's messengers walking towards his makeshift seat.

"Message for you sir!" He said loudly, in that voice humans tended to use just after they join, and have a drive to prove themselves. Kaaras didn't mind this most of the time, but at the moment it was quite unwelcome. Against his side, Asha pressed herself harder into his side, hiding her face, the volume of the young man's voice having disrupting her from her dozing state. Kaaras could a hear her low whine of protest, and the Vashoth fixed the human with a glare, irritation rushing to the surface. That surprised the human as his eyes went wide, and his pace slowed significantly.

Kaaras flicked his head down to the half asleep girl under his arm. "Shouting is not necessary." He tried keep his tone as neutral as possible, but the iciness could not be helped.

"Yes sir. Sorry sir." The kid practically squeaked, much quieter this time however.

Kaaras exhaled through his nose slowly, trying to dispel the annoyance he knew to be mostly irrational. "It's fine," No it wasn't, he was still annoyed. "What's the message?"

Scrambling now, the kid began sifting through the small stack letters in his hand. It took him a moment, but he found the correct piece of parchment and held it out to Kaaras, a slight shake to his hand. The warrior held in a sigh at the sight of the tremor, and took the letter from the messenger's hand as the kid began to speak, "A letter from a... Shokrokar, sir. Of the Valo-Kas." His voice cracking in the middle from nervousness or from his age, Kaaras didn't know.

Looking down at the paper he saw the familiar smattering that made up the chief's writing. Relief flooded his chest, replacing the tingling irritation. Next to him Asha straightened up at the familiar name, waking up fully this time, and rubbed an eye as she stretched.

Mood having done a complete 180, Kaaras smiled up at the slightly fearful messenger, "Thank you. We appreciate it." He said sincerely.

The kid let out a small relieved breath, and collected himself. With a nod, and a salute, he turned around to continue making his deliveries.

"What'd she say?" Asha said leaning over in an attempt to read the letter.

"I don't know. I haven't opened it up yet." He teased. She huffed, and wrapped a hand around his sleeve and tugged, urging him to hurry up.

With an absentminded smile he opened the letter and began skimming through the message. A frown soon replaced the smile as he read the Qunlat, which the Valo-kas always used in writing, and an icy disappointment settled in his stomach. The letter read in Shok's usual rambling line of thought, but its contents did not hold the humor that would normally be carried.

"So? What'd she say?" Asha urged, brow crinkling as she noticed his reaction. She could read the words herself but, it always took her some time to do so. She would get the information faster through him. "I can see Katoh's and Meraad's names..."

Kaaras closed his eyes, and breathed in deeply. Opening his eyes, he angled himself to face his daughter more fully, but didn't met her eyes, and placed a hand on her shoulder, a silent encouragement for her attention. The letter's contents settled over him, sinking into his bones with the coldness of fact. He had suspected of course, but the reality... was always cutting.

"It's bad isn't it?" She whispered

He took another deep breath, and pushed aside his trepidation to meet her eyes. "Asha," He started, and watched as the use of her name set off bells in her mind. She tensed and made to stand, but he took her hands in one of his own, to ground her as well as himself. She had to be told, the Valo-Kas was the only family she had ever known. "Asha, Katoh and Meraad were the only ones to make it back." She stills, and Kaaras felt a fissure form in his chest, "None of the others made it off the mountain."

For the longest time she didn't react, just sat still and stared back at him, until she let out an almost inaudible, "Oh," The grip she had on his fingers slackened, and her gaze dropped to the ground. Immediately the Vashoth grimaced. Releasing her hands, he wrapped both arms around her small frame to pull her into his chest. Asha went with no resistance, and made no noise as she leaned against him. He knew she wouldn't. Living with mercenaries meant casualties sometimes, even ones as skilled as the Valo-kas, there would always be somebody that made a mistake or lose themselves on a hot head. Asha was not a stranger to death.

Even so, they were her friends. She played and ate dinner with those men and women. Shivered with them in the winter, and sweated with them in the summer. The loss would be hard. For now she would shut down, and process the information, but tomorrow is when the fact would sink in and tear her apart.

Internally he cursed the Breach and its creator. For tearing away his friends, for hurting his daughter, and for all those people that were in the temple on that day. Leaning his head down, Kaaras rested a cheek on top of Asha's head. "I'll find who did this, and tear them apart. I promise you, Kadan." He whispered into her hair, anger seeping into his voice like a disease, deadly in its stillness.

The small human gave no outward reaction, simply breathed into her father's coat.

\---

Leaving for the Storm Coast two days later was hard. The day after they got the news was as difficult as he feared, Asha did little else but cry, and sleep, but the day he left, she seemed to be in a functional state. An extremely somber functional, but functional none the less. She would stay that way for two weeks at least.

He was saddened to think he knew exactly how she handled loss.

Kaaras felt terrible leaving. Being alone in grief was hard, but work had to be done, and he pushed his own feelings aside for now. This excursion was the last they would make before approaching the Mages.

He loved and hated this place. It was cold and the sound of the tides was soothing, but the rain soaked into every crevice, and the air smelled of rotting wood and salt, over powering the other smells in the area. It made it hard to tell what was here and what wasn't. He inhaled through his nose, and caught the scent of something that could be a High Dragon, but could also be the bottle of blood he had in his pouch. It set him on edge, but they hadn't seen any sign of such a beast so he held himself back.

Nor did the near constant arguing coming from the three newest members of the Inquisition, help him relax in any way. It turns out that convincing Cassandra, and the others, to take a break and stay behind, while he took Sera, Vivienne, and Blackwall to see about these mercenaries, was a huge mistake.

It was the worst clash of personalities he had ever witnessed in his 35 years, and he wondered why he even considered the idea.

Sera and Vivienne were the worst. Sera saw the mage as one of the 'knobheads' her and her 'friends' dealt with daily, and so had gone out of her way to annoy the enchanter. Vivienne, of course, didn't rise to the bait, and would brush off the archer with such a coolness that drove Sera crazy, making the elf even more driven in her quest to irritate, and thus the cycle would repeat its self. Over and over and over again.

Blackwall, and the Enchanter weren't much better, but instead of a pure anger, Vivienne's rebuttals seemed to make the warden sad as well as angry, as she laid out his shortcomings without mercy. Kaaras felt a bit of sympathy for the man, but what else could you expect when you picked a fight with a master of The Game?

Sera, and Blackwall were the complete opposite. It seemed that disliking Vivian was a great ice breaker. They quickly seemed to be as thick as thieves when they decided not to attempt to antagonize the mage. Kaaras was glad at least something came about on this trip.

Vivienne of course dealt with this all with a cool grace that Kaaras found he greatly admired. Petty jabs and barbs were nothing to her.

The near constant conflict, brought the Vashoth a huge headache, even now he could feel the pulse behind his forehead. Combined with the unfortunate news, and Asha's and his own emotional fall out, made him feel twitchy, and caged. There hadn't been one bandit attack on the way here. No rogue Templars, or Mages. Nothing. The group was lucky he was only took dragon's blood so often. He might have snapped their necks if he did on a full schedule.

But he needed a fight. Soon.

When a pained scream sounded from down the hill, a thread of excitement began to spread through him as his heart began to speed up. The sound also quieted the others, finally, and he looked over to meet their eyes. At once they drew their weapons and began to run towards the sounds of a skirmish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So how'd you guys like the new pov? Would you like more of this? Or maybe another character's or back to Cassandra's? Please let me know
> 
>  
> 
> Next chapter should be iron bulls introduction and maybe redcliffe
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it :)


End file.
